


To Strike Against Hell

by horngeek



Series: The Sword of Amaterasu [3]
Category: Exalted (Roleplaying Game), Legend of the Five Rings
Genre: F/F, Role-Playing Game, Roleplay Logs
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-03-12
Updated: 2019-07-06
Packaged: 2019-11-16 00:24:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 8
Words: 42,203
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18083813
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/horngeek/pseuds/horngeek
Summary: Trigger warnings: Unwilling nudity in public, threats of exposure to sexual assault, unwilling medical procedures.





	1. Wrath of Sun and Moon

Otosan Uchi is a port city, fed traffic from across the empire by the Bay of the Golden Sun. The waters here are warm and shallow, for the most part, but drop away sharply once one draws beyond the line of the coast, becoming a fathomless abyss broken only by the protruding forms of the odd island. 

It is on one of those islands that Sakura and Yuzuki now stand, the soft sand of a natural beach shifting beneath their feet. The rippling crash of waves forms a counterpoint to the slow creaking of the island's trees, and the scent of salt and seaweed is heavy on the air. Further down the beach, Yuzuki stands, wind playing oddly around the lines of her armoured form. 

"Sakura... you are a fine duellist, but the demons of hell will not respect a strike to first blood," her wife says slowly, rolling her shoulders with a faint creak, "nor will they die as men do when cut. Neither of us have faced such foes before, and we need to be ready. So... this isn't going to be a spar. I want you to fight me, for real, holding nothing back."

There was a time past when Sakura was given a similar request, by a spirit. Back then, she shied away from the request, unwilling to hurt the woman she loved so dearly. 

But... there had been some long conversations between her and her lover since then. Sakura realised that her love for Yuzuki, while important to her, wasn't something she could afford to let rule her so complety. So, she nods. "Very well."

She hums, standing in her training outfit, Amaterasu's obi secured around her waist and _Omoide_ tucked into the sash. It's not Yuzuki's armour... but it's all the protection she truly needs. She settles into her stance, her hand settled over the grip, her eyes closed behind her blindfold as she concentrates- and the symbol of the sun glows to life on her brow. "When you're ready, Yuzuki."

Yuzuki draws her blade and settles into her stance. The waves crash against the beach, the wind sings softly all around, and none of it seems to touch her in the least. There is only silence, and focus.

Sakura settles into her pose, the wind against her face... and _Omoide_ echoes the sound of the waves in her heart. It's a cool presence at her side, not at all like she would expect from a weapon _nemuranai_ , but oh so very suited to a blade crafted by the Kakita. She can tell in her heart that as soon as she moves, so will Yuzuki... so, she chooses to wait. She settles down, her focus laser-tight as the sword calms her heart and lets her focus on Yuzuki's movements. 

She knows her love will come- the only question is, when?

The wind blows, a low and mournful tune... and with it comes its child, following the breeze as her kind so often have. Yuzuki lunges across the space between them, fast and deadly, carrying with her all the furious momentum of the sea. Her sword makes a hissing noise as it cuts through the air, and...

Sakura smiles as her mind provides the perfect time. Golden light erupts around her like a beacon as she _moves_ , her blade hissing out of the sheathe- unbreakable force seeking to meet Yuzuki's blade, and drive it back.

For a brief moment, it seems like this might be enough... and then Yuzuki's arm _bends_ , contorting in a way that no human limb should ever be able to move, and her blade slips past Sakura's guard. 

Some part of Sakura expected her wife to hold back, to deliver a faint mark upon her skin, to make her point and nothing more... and then there is cold steel and the hot flow of freshly spilled blood, splattering against the sand.

"I told you," Yuzuki says, the air around her chill as the deepest knight, a bestial growl beneath her voice as she calls upon the light of Lord Moon, "not to _hold back_."

Sakura lets out a sharp breath, her sword out and ready as she spins away- part of her ready to strike, her reply slightly slow as Amaterasu's fire burns around her, dulling the pain slightly. "...I didn't."

She shakes her head. "Did I put all of Amaterasu's fire into the strike... no. But I was not trying to... to hold back from injuring you. I wouldn't insult you like that, Yuzuki, not after agreeing to this. I didn't expect you arm to _bend_ like that. I'm fairly certain if you hadn't done that, it would be your blood on the sand, not mine."

Yuzuki steps sideways, sand grinding against sand, and there is a note of challenge in her voice. "Demons won't stop because you're bleeding, either."

Sakura breathes out slightly, before she pulls her sheathe out of her obi. The rip in the clothing from the cut... there's no loose fibers, so it can be ignored. She holds her blade out straight, her sheathe at the guard position, in a position that's very unlike the classical _Kakita_ form. "I am aware."

Yuzuki advances, crossing the distance between the two of them in a heartbeat. She says nothing, barely even seems to be breathing... but her blade flickers out again and again, probing your defences, a grasshopper's chirp as it darts back and forth. 

The steel carries with it the scent of Sakura's own blood.

Yuzuki's blade is well-crafted, and carries the distinct wistling sound that such a blade makes- more importantly, Sakura can track it by scent as easily as... well, as she can track her own body. Her defences are rock-solid, as she avoids those blows that won't hit her- including a few that slice at her _kimono_ but require only a bit of movement to dodge and catch herself- and others she deflects with sheathe. One she even outright _parries_ , a move that she certainly wouldn't try with a standard katana- but _Omoide_ is not a mortal blade that will break against such things. 

It's an unorthodox defence, but one that comes easily to her.

The odd nick, the slightest half-step backwards forced by the assault... but Sakura's defence holds, and Yuzuki finds no gaping weakness to exploit

Sakura's eyes widen slightly behind her blindfold, however- she wouldn't call Yuzuki's attack a _failure_ by any means. Indeed, if it wasn't for her practice of making small dodges to make blows glancing, she suspects her love would have struck more severely at a few points. As it is, Sakura steps back, a small frown on her face as she lets her ruined top flutter away. 

In pitched battle, Sakura's always considered Yuzuki the better fighter than herself, honestly- and their respective blessings haven't changed that, it seems. But Sakura can, at least, give a good attempt at things... so she steps back fowards, her sheathe catching the ruined remmnants of her top as it flutters in the wind... and flinging it at Yuzuki.

After all, if this is preparing to fight demons, time to think like the Crab do- use every advantage. _Omoide_ swings in the wake of the distraction, seeking a gap in the armour. It's not a _lethal_ blow, by any means- but it's not a light one, either.

Yuzuki... makes no sound, as she slices the cloth from the air and brings her blade back around to parry, but something about her attitude, her _focus_ , conveys the impression of a snarl all the same. She relies on strength as much as speed for her defence, blade humming through the air with lightning speed even as she seeks to batter the incoming assault aside...

Even so, _Omoide_ finds its mark, cutting through armour plate and treated cloth and... nothing?

There is no flesh beneath, or none where it should be, Yuzuki's torso rippling like the waters of the sea to evade the blow.

Sakura's mouth opens slightly in shock- Onnotangu's powers are _very_ unlike those she's been given, it seems. But she doesn't let her surprise slow her down, instead wheeling around back into a ready position, panting slightly. 

"You're... not just able to take the forms of others, Yuzuki. I didn't realise before now."

She pauses, frowning slightly. "...I should have."

"Onnotangu is... a cruel god," Yuzuki says in a quiet voice. Not reflective, as such, more... intent. She prowls closer, sword humming as it catches the sea breeze, "I spoke with Yoritomo, at court, and the Kasuga. The Moon is worshipped by every nation and clan in this world, in at least some way. Sometimes as guardian, sometimes as father, or mother, but most often... as madness. As wrath. The wolf at the edge of the firelight, given meat and warmth to keep the other beasts at bay. Learning how to channel his power has been... challenging."

She darts forwards, lunging across the sand, blade singing, but no that's not right, her sword is out of position, what is she...

And then the steel bends, flowing like water, and her arms sway in ways no human limb should, and the assault is pressing...

Sakura blinks- she catches an _odd_ statement in Yuzuki's words, but there's no time, Yuzuki's _right there_. Her defence is quick and deft, the sheathe of her sword smacking away Yuzuki's fists- and her sword, less subtly, humming in the air as it flickers, warding away Yuzuki's arms by threatening to slice oncoming strikes directly. She pants as she does so, the cut in her side obviously starting to stress her, and nine month of relative inactivity showing its mark in a woman accustomed to daily drills at least. 

She needs to get back into shape, that much is _certainly_ clear to Sakura.

She breathes heavily for a heartbeat, before she launches herself into the assault, her expression slightly grim. Yuzuki's point is _definitely_ made, at this stage- Sakura needs to relearn how to _fight_ , needs to remind herself that her opponents from here will not be mere mortals. They will be demons- or those blessed by the Fortunes, those who use said blessings for their own desires. 

But, at the very least, she can try to show her lover one clear strike. Amaterasu's light howls around her, the bonfire lighting up the sky as a wolf howls behind her. Her focus is laser-clear as she steps into motion. 

The strike itself is blindingly fast- the sheathe sweeps across, moving towards Yuzuki's head in a crushing blow. But it's merely a feint, as the _sword_ strikes at Yuzuki's side once more, seeking the gap in the armour unerringly. This is, to be honest, all she has left- so, Sakura does her best to make it count.

Yuzuki greets the oncoming blow with all the grim stoicism the Utkau are known for. The Battle Maidens have faced demons and ghosts and charging armies without a word, the finest cavalry in Rokugan fighting in complete and total silence, and in this moment their daughter does them proud.

The blade slips through, however, and cuts into Yuzuki's side deeply in a clean cut- Yuzuki's blood joins Sakura's on the sand, as the Empress pulls away and takes up her ready position, her own breathing loud in her ears- and Yuzuki's as well. She can feel that blow must have _hurt_ , even if they're both too disciplined to actually let it show outwardly.

"...better," Yuzuki says slowly, a touch breathlessly, one hand lightly touching the raw, bleeding wound in her side, "I was... afraid you would flinch."

Sakura breathes heavily, one hand going to her own side for a moment- at the very least, the wound is clean. Not that Sakura's had problems with wounds getting infected ever since her blessing. "...there was a time I would have, I admit. But now..."

"As I said... I'm not going to insult you like that."

"There was a time a hit like that... would have killed me," Yuzuki says, and there is something close to _relish_ in her voice now, "but... that was the bargain. Power, a blessing from the highest among the gods, and in return... no hesitation. No lying, at least not to myself, not any longer. I am strong, now. I am _free_."

There is a new scent on the air, of animal musk and the stench of wet fur. The fresh spilled blood curdles, growing old, and in the distance every bird on the island screams and takes flight in a single moment.

_Crack_

Bone breaks. Steel bends. Silken straps tear and fray, heavy plates of armour falling away, landing with soft gasps in the blood-stained sand. Yuzuki's sword joins them a second later, planted a foot deep in rock and mud by a single errant shrug, and as she rolls her shoulders, Sakura feels her wife's body _grow_. 

"I... am beloved of the moon," She stands, ten foot high, clad in armour that sings with light, claws the length of swords flexing slowly in the breeze. From her back sprout two enormous wings, feathered like a bird of prey, stirring the air with every lazy beat, "And I am no longer afraid."

Sakura pauses for a moment, then laughs. "That settles that- you had the edge over me before this, Yuzuki, and this... is beyond me, at least as I am now."

Her sword returns to her sheathe with a _click_ as she smiles warmly. "...and you are all the more beautiful for it."

Yuzuki chuckles, a low rumbling sound that echoes across the waves, and abandons her transformation. The full, horrifying form of her strength unleashed fades away, taking with it the singular injury of note she suffered in their duel, until all that is left is a faint line across her taut muscles. 

The wings, however, do not fade. Sakura's wife steps close, and wraps the pair in a ring of feathers, one hand coming up to rest against Sakura's cheek. 

"I love you, Sakura," she says in a quiet voice, "And if that means following you into the depths of Hell itself on some fool's quest for a dead man's body... so be it."

Sakura smiles as she feels the wings fold around her, smiling slightly. "That's all I ask, Yuzuki. And if this must be done- and I believe it does- then there's no one I'd rather have by my side to do it than you."

-/-

"What in Hida's name is _that_."

As openings go, Sakura has certainly heard better, but as she enters the echoing cavern beneath the northern mountains that Togashi's directions led her to, it is not hard to understand why. 

There is... a device, of some kind, in the very centre of the chamber. It is made of wood, she thinks, and shaped somewhat like a boat, but unlike any vessel she has ever encountered before it lacks any kind of sail. Instead there appears to be a large... _shape_ , hanging in the air above the main hull, supported by nothing more than a series of ropes that creak slightly in response to some unknown pressure. 

"It is a ship," Togashi says in a calm voice, addressing them from his perch atop the main hull, where it appears he was... meditating? "Journeying to Hell is not a particularly swift endeavour."

Sakura tilts her head as she listens to the creaking. "Is it... a flying ship? It sounds almost like it's flying."

She pauses for a moment, before she speaks again. "This will make the journey quicker, I hope."

"It will make the journey more pleasant." Togashi replies in tranquil fashion. "I expect we will need to sail for five days to reach the Demon City."

Behind Sakura, Hida Kisada frowns, a tectonic motion that she can actually _hear_. She doubts the man is happy to be here, but with someone like Aiko moving the pieces... well, the only challenge was in hiding Sakura's satisfaction when he claimed private audience and demanded the right to attend. His attendant retinue of hardened warriors, veteran priests and grizzled scouts were more of a surprise, but Sakura supposes he cannot be faulted for wanting kin to hand in such a hostile realm.

"The Hiruma told me it takes five days to _walk_ there," he says at last, "Are you taking a less direct route?"

"Not as such," Togashi shakes his head, rising from his meditative posture and dropping lightly to the cavern floor, "Crossing the Endless Desert _always_ takes five days, neither more or less, assuming one can avoid being waylaid by the inhabitants."

Sakura blinks. "What. That..."

She tilts her head, frowning and thinking. "Is the place aware and forces travellers to take five days, or is it a thing inherent to the realm?"

"Yes."

Behind her, Sakura hears Yuzuki lean over and mutter something to Kisada, who merely nods in a deeply weary fashion.

Sakura lets out a breath. "... _right_. If that's the case, then we had best be on our way as quickly as possible."

"Five days there, and five days back," The woman who is not Sakura despite all appearances to the contrary says in a calm, thoughtful voice, "Perhaps you might even return before I arrive back at the capital."

"Possible, but doubtful- I imagine that the actual task will not be immediate in itself, Togashi-no-kami?"

"It will take five days to reach the Demon City," Togashi inclines his head, as behind him samurai of the Dragon Clan assist in loading the supplies for the voyage, "Actually reaching our destination could take significantly longer. I cannot predict how long until I see what part of the city we reach first."

He pauses.

"Also, if any demon asks, we are all present on official business from Verumipra, Warden of Hell, and any questions are to be directed to his office."

"Verumipra. From the title, I assume he is a Fortune unworshipped by Rokugan."

Sakura tilts her head, her tone slightly dry. " _Is_ he aware of our task?"

"He is the Fortune responsible for acting as, essentially, an ambassador of Heaven in the very depths of Jigoku," Togashi explains briefly, "As far as anyone can tell, he has stayed uncorrupted in every possible meaning of the word for over a century now. He also owes me a service, which I have elected to claim."

There is a pause. "Ideally, we will not actually have to speak with him."

Sakura nods, slightly grimly. "I assume there is reason you would prefer that. If that is personal, I will not pry- if it is relevant to our task, it would be better we know."

"He hates you, doesn't he." Hida Kisada, it seems, is somewhat less diplomatic than Sakura.

"...hate is a strong word." Togashi, in turn, has not represented his people in court for some time.

The Empress simply sighs. "While this must be done regardless... how likely is he to hold a grudge over the claiming of the service in this context?"

"There is an outside chance he may have someone approach you offering to help break whatever influence I am using to chain one of the Sun's Chosen into doing my nefarious bidding."

Sakura pauses for a moment. "Interesting. Are there any other matters of note to cover before we depart, Togashi-no-kami?"

"Not at present," Togashi says simply, turning and making his way over to the far wall of the chamber, "I will open the portal shortly. Please board the vessel."

"You know, I don't think I will ever get used to _the_ Togashi still being in command of the Dragon," Yuzuki says in tones of idle speculation.

"In retrospect, it actually makes a lot of things much clearer," Hida Kisada notes grimly, before leading his band of specialists and retainers towards the ship.

Sakura tilt's her head, her expression unreadable as she speaks softly to Yuzuki. "In truth, that one of the Kami is still alive is the _least_ surprising thing I learnt about them since I gained Amaterasu's blessing. On that note of surprising things... there's something you said earlier that's on my mind."

"Oh?" Yuzuki says, moving towards the ship with a certain trepidation. She has been forced to leave Raiko behind, and is clearly none too happy about it.

Sakura hums softly, speaking slowly as they walk up the plank of the ship. "...about Onnotangu. The wolf at the edge of the firelight, you said, keeping the other beasts at bay. That's still a guardian, even if through being the beast that drives off others. It's not a way that Rokugan thinks of him at all."

"We've been isolated for a long time," Yuzuki says thoughtfully, "And the land has been relatively tame for centuries. A god of the wild places and borders is... less welcome, in such times. Though I have heard the Crab revere him more than the other Clans."

"Indeed. But now, we find outselves thrust back into contact with the world soon. I think soon we might be rather glad of one partaking in such a guardian's power."

She pauses. "...honestly, I suspect Hida himself was blessed by Onnotangu, not Amaterasu."

"I mean, we could ask, but..." Yuzuki makes a vague sort of gesture in Togashi's direction.

Sakura hums for a moment. "...honestly, this isn't my decision whether to ask or not- _you're_ the one with Onnotangu's blessing, not I. Either way... I think we will be glad of it. And I especially think we shall be glad of it in what comes during this journey."

There is a distant howl, and a sound like tearing paper... and then, from the far wall of the cavern, a wave of heat and arid air. 

From somewhere below the deck Sakura hears Kisada say "Of _course_ he's a maho-tsukai, why would he not be..."

And then, the ship sets sail- to start its five-day journey.


	2. The Endless Desert

Sakura thought she was prepared. She thought that she knew what a desert would have to offer; perhaps it would not be entirely kin to the Burning Sands, but the differences cannot be so many. She was wrong.

It is dry. There is no water, not so much as a single droplet to be found or felt or tasted. No rivers, no streams, no clouds, not so much as the slightest hint of humidity. Merely being on the deck dries Sakura's skin and cracks her lips.

It is hot. If she did not know better, Sakura would say that she was standing in front of an open fire, scarce paces away at most, but there is no source or direction to the heat. It simply batters at her, constantly, from all directions.

It is _silent_. Nothing moves, nothing breathes, nothing so much as twitches to hide the faint creaks of rope and groans of expanding wood as Togashi's strange air-ship carries the group of samurai across the empty skies.

They are beyond Rokugan... no, beyond the Mortal Realm entirely, and every second that passes serves to remind Sakura of that one simple fact.

The dryness and the heat are... well, Sakura has been in a desert before. Not one as harsh as this, even for how harsh the Burning Sands are, but she _has_ been in one. 

The silence, though... that disturbs her in a way she cannot describe properly. She finds herself tapping with her foot often, creating echoes to navigate herself instead of relying on the sounds of the world as is her custom. It's more than that, however, and although her face betrays none of her nervousness, she rarely keeps to herself during the voyage- instead, she finds herself listening to any conversation on the ship, not to listen in of course, but merely to _hear_ something. 

Her comment to Yuzuki only a few hours in sums up the why. "It's as if I'm deafened here."

"Savour it while it lasts, _heika_ ," one of the Crab offers with a kind of grim amusement - he is a tall, lanky figure, one of the Hiruma that the Crab Champion brought with him - "The City on the far side is never silent, at any moment of day or... well, day."

Sakura lets out a breath, tilting her head. "In truth, that would be preferable. Constant sounds may be deafening at first, but I can adjust and then it will show me what is _there_ as clearly as if I could see. Here, however... nothing. I imagine it's nothing but sand as far as you can see, of course, but I am blinded in a way I have not been for a very long time."

She pauses for a moment. "...which, of course, has me wanting to fill the silence with any sound I can make. What awaits us on the far side, Himura-san? Your words suggest there is no night there?"

"None of my kin have ever encountered any, _heika_ ," the Hiruma replies, turning away to stare out at the sands, "Though we do not venture here often. Perhaps once every few years, in pursuit of some particular foe or to investigate a particular threat. But the sun here is..."

"Green," Yuzuki murmurs softly, moving up to join the two, "And there are no shadows. I don't... understand how that is possible. The light just gets... everywhere."

The floorboards creak slightly under a great weight, and then Hida Kisada himself emerges from the cabin behind them.

"It's name," he says gruffly, "is Ligier."

Sakura narrows her eyes. "Liger. A blasphemous mockery of Amaterasu, I assume. Allowing no shadows, so simply harsh sunlight with no escape from it- until it withers everything."

As opposed to Amaterasu, she doesn't say- who _does_ allow shelter from her light, so it gives life to all things.

"More or less," Kisada grunts, moving over to stand... well not at Sakura's side, precisely, but close enough for casual conversation, "Ligier... Oni-no-Ligier, to use the name in the Kuni texts I studied... has a position in the hierarchy of Jigoku similar to that which Amaterasu has in Tengoku. Spending too long exposed directly to its light will make a man sicken and die, though the Kuni were never able to determine just how long is 'too' long."

Sakura hums. "Hopefully, we will be quick enough that that does not become an issue. What other hazards might we encounter from the realm itself? Togashi has... a considerable wealth of knowledge, but he is... to put it politely, unused to speaking plainly. And I would be a fool to accept your aid then refuse to listen to your knowledge."

"Trust nothing," Kisada replies simply, "And understand that this is not a simple aphorism - _everything_ here can harm you. The Hiruma and the Kuni have been attempting to catalogue the dangers of the Demon Realm for a thousand years, and none will claim to be even nearly complete. There is rain that will drive you mad, music that will possess you, water that will melt the skin from your bones... Araski, what else?"

"There are always the plants, Hida-dono," the scout says obediently, "I am given to understand that letting one touch you will lead to it devouring your bones and moving your corpse around like a puppet."

"Right, yes, that as well," Kisada seems almost _amused_ by the reminder, bizarrely enough.

Sakura raises an eyebrow. "...it seems almost like there is a story behind that last one, Hida-san."

She doesn't say it outright, but her tone certainly invites the Crab Champion to share- both to learn from the tale, and to simply fill up the silence.

"A samurai of the Scorpion once hit upon an ingeniously clever idea," Hida Kisada chuckles, "He would import several strains of strangely fertile and resilient wheat that a samurai in his employ had sourced for him, replace his own fields with them, and use the massively improved harvests to propel his immediate family to economic and political prosperity. Turns out that the grain ate the eyes of anyone who tried to eat it and made them into its slaves. Easy to spot, of course, since the grains start poking back out through the skull again within a day or so, barely a danger at all to anyone with any caution... unless, of course, you come from a Clan that makes a habit of wearing masks."

Sakura turns her head a bit. "And, of course, by the time the danger was discovered, it was beyond a small threat. How was the issue discovered? I imagine a Scorpion who doesn't wear a mask over their upper face."

She removes her blindfold as she speaks, recognising the relevance. If the light of this... _Liger_... pierces through obstacles anyway, the blindfold will do her no good.

"Oh, the Scorpion have their own Witch Hunters... call them the Black Watch, I think... and one of them figured out what was going on before too long," Kisada shrugs, broad shoulders rising and falling like the waves, "Then they marched a legion into the province, killed everyone there and burned all the fields. Got it recorded on Imperial tax records as a flood or something, I think."

Sakura nods. "Extreme measures, but necessary. What of the inhabitants of Hell themselves? What are the most common, which should be be most aware of?"

Kisada rubs his jaw for a moment, producing a sound of stone grinding against stone.

"There are the Blood Apes, the Jade Lions, the Jewelled Wasps, about five hundred varieties of spider..." He says thoughtfully, "For the most part, there are two... tiers, I suppose, that you should be aware of. The unique individuals, the demon lords, each of which is possessed of vast power and individual abilities that we cannot hope to readily predict. Then there are the _breeds_ of demons, generally created by their lords to serve some particular purpose; aerial mount, frontline shock troop, foundry worker, food..."

There's a soft hum from the Empress, before she speaks. "... why are spiders particularly... no, it doesn't matter why there are so many varieties, simply that there are. I assume you do not mean normal-sized ones, in any case. I assume the breeds of demon are too varied to make _specific_ judgements about abilities themselves, but once we have identified a particular breed, all demons of that type will have similar abilities?"

"Except for the ones that don't, which will probably kill someone relying on that knowledge, yes," Kisada says cheerfully.

He trails off at that, and in the silence Sakura hears... well, something. She's not quite sure what it is, but there is a distant grinding noise, or perhaps a buzzing...

Sakura smiles slightly at his last comment, tilting her head in acknowledgement of the point... then she blinks. "Hida-san. Are there any demons that make a loud grinding or buzzing sound? Because I hear one right now, far off in the distance, directly ahead of us."

"Quite a few, yes," and suddenly all humour is gone, and the Champion of the Crab is as serious as she has ever experienced anyone before, "Can you tell more ab... oh."

His voice trails off, and Sakura can hear a strange sort of crackling join the noise now, which is getting rather louder... and also coming from a wider angle than one creature could possibly span. 

"...I cannot see the horizon," Yuzuki says with slowly dawning horror.

Sakura turns her head towards the Himura. "Get Togashi-no-kami, _now_ \- assuming he doesn not already know of this. Hida-san, what is that?"

"Araski?" The Champion growls, turning towards the scout without a moment of hesitation. 

"A storm, my lord," the Hiruma says solemnly, leaning out over the side of the ship, apparently uncaring of the long drop, "I... we either need to outrun it, or put this ship down, now."

There is a brief series of footsteps, and then Togashi emerges onto the deck as well, his upper body for once covered by what appears to be a heavy cloak of some kind. "Ah, a glass-storm. Troublesome."

"That is one word for it."

Sakura turns to the Champion of the Dragon, her eyes open. "What do we face, and do you have any magic that can protect us from it?"

"Picture a tsunami. Now replace the water with broken glass," Togashi says with disconcerting serenity, "The ship will survive. I will guarantee it. You may wish to withdraw below deck."

Sakura looks at Togashi for a moment, then nods. "Very well. Everyone, below deck. I assume we should brace ourselves for the storm, even if the ship is protected from actual _damage_?"

"There may be a certain level of... instability," Togashi nods, "I will attempt to keep us as level as possible. I do, however, recommend holding onto something. Or tying yourself to something."

"How long do you expect the storm to last? Hours, or..."

Sakura _thinks_ Yuzuki brought rope, so they should be fine there, at least.

The sound of the storm has grown louder, now, the buzzing and the grinding complimented by a constant chorus of shattering glass and crackling lightning. Togashi, by contrast, is surrounded by an aura of... obscurity. Sakura finds it hard to pick out any one fact about him in that moment, or to properly categorise the sensations that the swelling of his soul brings with it. Not because they are difficult to describe, but because she is not _allowed_ to describe them...

"I do not know," the Champion of the Dragon says simply, though he seems disinclined to move from his spot.

"Then we had best be ready for a long time."

Sakura starts to lead the way below decks, her head turning towards Kisada. "Hida-san, I assume your men will be able to secure themselves?"

"Worry about yourself, Empress," Hida Kisada growls, "We have survived worse than this."

Sakura nods. "Very well. I will leave you to your preparations, then. Yuzuki?"

Together, the two of them retreat to their cabin, near the rear of the ship. Even here, behind layers of wood, Sakura can still hear the storm... and, for that matter, feel the way that the ship is already starting to buck and twist beneath the steadily growing wind.

Sakura sways a bit on the ship, grimacing. "Did you bring any rope, Yuzuki? I can't speak for you, of course, but I don't think my balance is going to be up to staying stable on my own under these circumstances, especially if this gets worse. It might be best if I took Togashi's advice."

"Some, yes," Yuzuki says tersely, already rooting through the pile of satchels and other bags stacked up against the far wall, "You never know when you might need some rope in the field..."

A few moments later, she pulls out several lengths of tough, resilient cord. "Best not to lay this against skin. It's rough enough to burn."

Sakura grimaces. "A bit of a pity... it wouldn't be an awful idea to take my mind off the storm outside. Probably some around my waist and to an anchor point, then."

Yuzuki sets to work, swiftly securing the two of them as best she can, and in the distance... Sakura thinks she can hear Togashi saying something, loudly, stridently, in the language of the gods... a prayer, perhaps?

It is all but lost beneath the howling of the storm.

Sakura listens to it as well as she can regardless, slipping her arms around Yuzuki gently. "Five days of this will be... a test of endurance, I think."

It... ah. It is not a prayer. Sakura is not entirely sure where the Kami of the Dragon learned language like that, but as best she can tell, the sentiments he is expressing at the top of his lungs more or less translate as "I challenge you, hateful thing, to demonstrate your prowess."

A moment later, the desert complies. 

It is rather like being struck by a hammer. The entire ship bucks and heaves like a wild horse, spinning wildly around, and all hope of tracking shape or texture by sound is lost beneath the roaring hail of shattering glass and grinding sand.

Sakura widens her eyes a moment before the storm hits. She pulls herself against Yuzuki tighter, one arm moving down to hold onto the bed they sit upon. 

Then, the storm hits. Sakura can do little, honestly, but she does call on Amaterasu's power, sending it coursing through her body and strengthening her skin to prevent her body from bruising as she jerks around.

It goes on, and on, and _on_. Hours pass, and the chaos never stops. The ship bucks and heaves and on at least one occasion lurches in a fashion that Sakura horribly suspects means it just flipped entirely prow over stern. She can hear... almost nothing, beyond the horrific crashing and roaring of the storm, and Yuzuki's increasingly rapid breathing as she holds herself in place with inhuman strength.

Sakura grits her teeth, wondering what exactly possessed Togashi to _deliberately provoke_ such a thing. Wondering how the Crab are doing- they are tough, but they don't have the powers she and Yuzuki has to help. 

And, more than that, she listens, focusing past the storm, listening for _any_ change in the fury and roaring.

There is nothing in the storm. Nothing could survive in the midst of such fury. But... now that Sakura listens... there is more than just a mindless shriek of wind and sand to be heard within the storm itself. It rises and falls, changes in tone, and forms something that sounds very much like a word.

The word is " **You**."

Distantly, she hears Togashi reply "Me."

Of _course_ Togashi knows... whatever this is. Sakura doesn't mention it- but she notes that fact for later.

At last, the storm ends. The swaying stops, the wind dies away, and the unsettling silence returns.

"We... survived?" Yuzuki says, somewhat doubtful, "And the ship is still in one piece as well..."

Sakura pants softly, starting to fumble with the knot of the rope around her waist. "Togashi's skill did, I suspect, preserve the ship... even if the _method_ he chose was a bit... rash... for my liking."

"...do you think the _Crab_ survived?" Yuzuki asks slowly... and is answered a few moments later by a dull _thump_ from somewhere within the ship and the sound of rapid cursing.

"They are tough, and I certainly think _Kisada_ is unharmed, but the others may be injured."

"And... Togashi?" 

As she says that, Sakura realises that while she can hear movement from the Crab's part of the ship, there is only silence from the deck.

Sakura finishes untying the knot as Yuzuki speaks, and her head jerks towards her wife. 

Then, with a muttered curse, she starts to hurry towards the deck, her sword tapping against the wooden floor to provide guidance.

She emerges onto the deck, silent now save for the distant echo of the wind, to find... nothing. 

The deck is battered, but intact. The ropes that hold the strange bag in place have remained inexplicably whole in the face of the glass. Small piles of tinkling shards are brushed aside with every step. And Togashi...

Togashi is gone.

Sakura breathes in for a moment. Then, she opens her eyes. 

This may be a disaster, but they cannot let it stop them. 

She makes her way below deck, her sword tapping at the floor as she makes her way to Yuzuki. "Togashi is gone. We need to speak to Hida-san about how we continue."

"He's fucking _what_."

Apparently whatever else may have happened, Hida Kisada still has functional hearing. He looms in the narrow confines of the vessel's corridors, all but radiating incredulity.

"He's gone. I went up to the deck, and there is no sign of him. Fortunately, I do at least have a _name_."

Sakura sighs. "Hireldi. She is, apparently, the demon lord who has Hida-no-kami's body. We may not have Togashi's more... intimate knowledge of our destination, but we still have your Clan's knowledge. That said... how bad is the injury to your men, Hida-san?"

"Two broken bones, a lot of bruises, a few embarrassing stains," Hida Kisada growls, rapidly controlling himself again, "Overall, we are... passable. You intend to continue, then?"

Sakura nods. "Of course. This is a _setback_ , not a total defeat. If Togashi is alive... well, it is five days to cross the desert, so he will not to too far behind us. If he is dead... then we will have to be enough. Now, the most relevant question- if Togashi is not on this ship any longer, will the magic steering it continue to function, and if not, do we have enough skill in sailing between us to adapt and continue on it?"

"Kuni-san!" Kisada turns, bellowing, "Get up here!"

With a slow, unsteady gait, one of the Crab emerges from their quarters. His body jangles slightly with every movement, a string of charms and other talismans hanging from his chest and arms, and he leans heavily on a staff to stay upright. "You summoned me, Hida-dono?"

"Find out how this craft functions," The Crab Champion commands, "It seems our guide has gone and vanished, so now we need the ship to sail itself."

The Kuni simply nods and begins shuffling towards the deck.

Sakura nods in respect to the shugenja, then her focus returns to Kisada. "This Hireldi. I know she is a worker of metals, and is apparently... Togashi described her as the Messanger Soul of Munaxes. Does any of that mean anything to you, or do you have any further information on her?"

"There are... hmm," Kisada nods thoughtfully, "Let us discuss this beneath open air."

Left unsaid is that this will give his people the time to make themselves somewhat presentable.

Sakura tilts her head, and follows Kisada up to the deck. It's a reasonable request, after all.

Once there, Kisada takes a moment to muster his thoughts.

"The Messenger Soul... hmph. Yes, I know what that means. You have received tutoring on spiritual matters, I trust?"

Sakura nods. "Some, from the Centipede."

"Humans have two souls - the Higher soul, which governs reason, and the lower soul, which governs instinct," Kisada summarises, "The demon lords of Hell also have souls, or things which approximate such things. Seven of them, to be precise."

"And... ah. These souls are demons of their own."

"Indeed. Their souls govern their ability to reflect, communicate, protect, gratify, express, desire and define themselves," Kisada nods, "The terms are... imprecise, in much the same way as saying "your higher soul governs reason" must encompass all that you are as a person rather than a beast. Still, if Hiraldi is a messenger soul, then she will represent or define the way that her superior communicates her will to the world."

"But you have no specific knowledge of herself?"

Sakura frowns as she speaks, but it’s not from the lack of knowledge- instead, Kisada's words have her thinking about what she was told once, long ago, about how Amaterasu had given her a piece of her own soul.

"There are several hundred demon lords, and when each possesses seven souls, even the finest sage will be limited in what knowledge they might command," Kisada replies, and for a moment he sounds strangely defensive, "Hiraldi has never, to my knowledge, concerned herself with Rokugan."

"Then it is not unreasonable that your knowledge would be limited, Hida-san."

Sakura grimaces slghtly, before she asks her next question. "What options do we have for gathering information once we reach Hell?"

"Are you willing to ask the demons?" Kisada replies, famously blunt.

"If we must."

"There are other options," Kisada shrugs, "There are those within Hell who are not demons, some of whom do not even _serve_ demons... the Warden, for one - but finding them in turn is challenging."

"And will likely require asking demons first. Or drawing attention to ourselves."

There's a slightly thoughtful look on Sakura's face after a few moments.

"More or less, yes," Kisada pauses, "You have an idea?"

Sakura's head turns towards Kisada. "It occurs to me that we are not exactly a group equipped to go _un_ noticed. So... maybe we should embrace that. Cause a disruption, draw attention. It’s not a very fleshed-out plan at present, I admit, but it might draw potential sources out. That said, it is a highly risky option- if you consider to too much so, Hida-san, I will not attempt to overrule you."

"...do you know what happens to those who die in Hell?" The Crab replies, his voice quiet and sombre.

Sakura pauses, then nods. "I have heard of it, yes. If we decide to be so obvious, I will command none to accompany us. But some things, I think, are worth the risk- at least for myself."

"Do you imagine that those who I brought with me do not understand this?" The Champion of the Crab says seriously, "Or that they thought they would survive a voyage into Hell, on a mission to steal a treasure of worth from the halls of a Demon Lord?"

Sakura tilts her head, frowning for a moment, before she nods. "My apologies, Hida-san. You are quite right. In that case, I believe we have our plan, or at least the start of one."


	3. The Demon City

Four days later, the voyage comes to an end.

Sakura doesn't need the samurai accompanying her to inform her of this. She doesn't need to keep track of the passing hours. She needs merely listen, to smell, to feel... to _exist_. Her senses are keen beyond the measure of a mortal soul, but had she been as helpless as a newborn kitten Sakura still would not have missed the approach of the city.

The noise is the first thing that strikes her, pricking at her senses and rapidly growing to a physical assault that batters against her skin and sends bolts of pain radiating out through her skull. There are horns that wail, drums that pound, bells that chime, a chorus of voices that scream for endless eternity... a maddened, fractured chorus, in which can be found works of beauty and poems to depravity beyond the reckoning of mortal mind.

Then there is the smell. Fur and flesh, spice and ink, temple incense and fresh spilled blood, an endless medley of scents... and above it all, overruling it all, the harsh scent of metal baking in the sun. The city is a monolith of brass and basalt, and Sakura does not need her wife's words to discern the source of the endless heat. She can _feel_ the light of the Green Sun of Hell against her skin, pressing against her body like a heated rock fresh from the sauna.

It is strange... so strange, in fact, that it takes Sakura a moment to understand the _scope_ of it, and perhaps more relevantly, the _shape_.

"Gods preserve us all," Yuzuki whispers, awe and horror both in her trembling voice, "It's _folded_."

She is right. Sakura can tell from the echoes, from the way that the wind buffets against her skin. The Demon City is a metropolis vastly in excess of anything she had ever dreamed of, large enough to swallow all of Rokugan within its metallic shell, and the ground that should be flat or rolling has instead been folded back on itself, creased and smoothed and shaped according to some infernal will.

It is origami, writ on cosmic scale.

"How... how many are there?" Yuzuki says softly.

"We don't know," Kisada responds, his voice grim and flat, "We have explored only a small fraction of the outer edge, but... for every human in the world, there exist at the very least ten thousand demons... and they all live here, within a single city."

Sakura pauses for a moment, her face set. The _sound_ is... overwhelming, at first. It feels almost intended to drive any hope of silence away, and the difference between this and the desert is... well, it cannot be overstated. The pain is intense, and it takes supreme effort to keep it off her face, but she does manage it. A few more moments to... it's hard for Sakura to describe what she does next. Amaterasu's gift's have enhanced how _much_ she can hear, but they also enhanced Sakura's ability to filter out particular sounds, and that's what she does here.

Breathing steadily, Sakura gradually reduces her sensitivity to the constant _noise_ of the Demon City, reducing how much it distracts her and pains her to the level of a normal city- say, Otosan Uichi in the middle of the markets. She breathes out, then focuses on what the sounds actually _tell_ her. Of the scale... and she focuses on Hida Kisada's words. "Then, I think, it would be well for us to avoid bringing the attention of the Realm itself "

She considers the next move they should make for a few moments- of course, they planned this over the course of the remaining four days, but always with the view that there might be some adaptation required. "We remain with the original plan- we find one of demons of this city that has managed to claw its way above the rest, and we bring what it has wrought down. We do not bother with subtlety- in fact, Yuzuki, Hida-san, our souls should flare as high as possible during this. We are declaring that three chosen by the greatest Fortunes are here."

She pauses for a moment. "We _also_ use this as an opportunity to find... I will not say _safe_ resting place in here of all places, but we use it as a place to berth this ship- and for those injured beyond ability to move quickly to remain. From there... we will need to determine our moves carefully. If we must question the demons of this place, I should preferably be present, since Amaterasu's gifts I possess include the ability to determine lies- with the influence this realm has on its inhabitants, we cannot trust that threats will be effective in ensuring we are told the truth."

Kisada nods, then barks... well, Sakura _assumes_ it is some kind of order at the Kuni controlling the ship, for a moment later the vessel turns and begins skimming along the edges of the great folded city rather than plunging headlong into it. She has heard that the Crab have their own kind of war-cant, filling innocuous words with hidden meanings, but this is Sakura's first time observing it in practice.

"Looking at this place now," Yuzuki says softly, standing at Sakura's side as the harsh winds of the desert whip at their skin, "I find it easy to doubt. If we have come out in the wrong place, it might take months just to _reach_ our destination..."

Sakura is silent for along moment, before she speaks. "Possible. For now, I intend to continue as if that is not the case. If it is... it does not make the task _impossible_ , but it means it will become a task we must perform over several expeditions to this city. Especially this year, there is a limit to how much time we can afford to spend here. Hida Kisada-san has the Crab to lead, after all- and I, Rokugan."

She doesn’t want to admit it, but the reality must be faced. Sakura's face is smooth as her clouded eyes turn to Yuzuki. "But I _do_ intend to see this done, even if it takes longer than this expedition. And, as I said- until we _do_ determine that we have run out of time, we shall proceed as if it is possible to complete the task in this expedition."

"That seems fair," Yuzuki says, and there is a curious note in her voice now, "I wonder..."

Their discussion is interrupted by a cry from the Hiruma on the prow, and the excited chatter as Crab relay information back and forth. It seems... yes, Sakura can hear it now. The creak of sails, the chatter of demons, the hammer of nails on wood and stranger things besides. The reports from the outlookers merely confirm Sakura's initial analysis; ahead of them is some kind of port facility, the size of a small city, where ships much like theirs arrive and depart across the sands.

"If it's anything like back home," Yuzuki says thoughtfully, "There will be a local lord given responsibility over this place, in fealty to those above. I know not how the corruption of Hell will have twisted the Celestial Hierarchy, but it seems as good a place as any to investigate."

Sakura tilts her head, and makes a mental note to continue the conversation later. "Well, then, we shall have to make our entrance."

She raises her voice, enough for Kisada to hear. "Hida-san, your opinion of our chances if we were to make our entrance with force? This would certainly make for a _visible_ first target..."

As she speaks, she tilts her head, listening carefully, trying to evaluate the answer to that same question herself. The facility is the _size_ of a small city- but what of numbers?

"If we hit the leadership directly, we have a strong chance," Kisada says after a moment, stoic and motionless as he stares out at the approaching target, "Finding the leadership might be troublesome, but... we could always demand that they appear before us."

Sakura smiles. "In that case... I believe we should put on an appropriate demand aswe make said demand. Yuzuki, Hida-san, I believe it would be best for us to let our souls shine as we disembark."

\--/--

The ship comes down quickly. 

Oh, they don't try to _crash_ it or anything like that- their group needs a method to _return_ \- but it comes in fast, almost but not quite dangerously so. The point is to leave little time for the demons below to respond. 

As it descends, Sakura, Yuzuki and Kisada stand on the deck. And they call their souls' lights forth. For Sakura... the false sun of this place is what she concentrates on, as she meditates. Or rather, she uses it to remind herself of what Amaterasu's light means to her, a blind woman. It doesn't help her to see, but what it _does_ do is provide her with _warmth_. 

That warmth, that fire, fills her- and it expands outwards. The sunburst symbol appears on her head. And then, it expands outwards more, and Sakura can hear the shocked cries from below as she- and her love, and her vassal- start to express their power visibly. 

The ship comes to a halt. The plank to the ground lowers, and for the first time in five days, three people walk off. Sakura stands in front, her sword still in its sheath. Flanking her, first, is Yuzuki, and second, Kisada. None have drawn weapons yet... well, apart from the tetsubo that Kisada rests on one shoulder almost casually. But Sakura's hand rests on the hilt of her blade. 

Ready to draw. 

"I am Sakura. And we have come to find the leader of this place. If you value what lives you have... they will come before us. _Now_."

Their arrival is as a stone dropped into a lake. The scurrying crowds of demons recoil from Sakura's presence, sending ripples of whispers and frantic proclamations from one ear to another, while a few break off to go running in certain directions.

"Not a bad first impression," Kisada says mildly at her back, the scent of fresh-cut stone and old mountain rock whirling around him in a torrent, "always pays to establish strength when dealing with pirates and the like."

"Do the Crab deal with many pirates?" Yuzuki asks with a faint edge to her tone, one that could be condemnation or amusement just as easily.

"Have you ever met the Mantis?"

Further exchanges are cut off by the thumping approach of a larger group from the direction of the main complex. Sakura smells blood-matted fur and bestial musk, and hear the shuffling gait of something that seems as comfortable on two legs as four. Presumably these are the Blood Apes Kisada spoke of... a full dozen of them at that, and at their head a larger and more imposing specimen of their kind.

"Greetings, Exalted Ones," the demon says, stopping with its retinue a few paces from the base of the ramp and losing its torso into something that might be called a bow. "I am Ssark, overseer of this facility on behalf of Citizen Florivet. Regrettably the Whim of the Wind is absent on business at present, but perhaps I can be of assistance?"

Sakura smiles slightly at the banter, then tilts her head slightly as this... Ssark... speaks. The stench is _awful_ , but Sakura's encountered gorillas before... perhaps these... _Blood Apes_ have similar body language. And smells of emotion. There's the familiar... they _do_ actually have hearbeats, that catches her slightly off-guard, but she listens to it all the same. Tone, too- she pushes her outrage that a demon would speak the language of the spirits down, and focuses on _how_ this demon actually speaks. His tone when addressing _her_ , his tone when speaking of his lord. 

She's had to do this once before, during her year in the Burning Sands- to read body language and tone and understand a different context to that of Rokugan. The same skills apply, simply... with a greater challenge. Significantly greater, to be honest- Sakura doesn't expect muct to come of this, but two things she seeks- first, how do the demons expect this meeting to go. 

And secondly... this warped version of Rokugan's heirarchy is one she expects to be a fair bit... looser. How loyal _are_ these demons to this... Whim of the Wind, really?

He’s a peasant.

It takes Sakura a moment to put that intuition in context, to understand why her mind turns to such an explanation for what she has found and perceived, but... yes, the pieces fit surprisingly well. This ‘Ssark’ reminds her of nothing quite so much as a peasant suddenly confronted by the arrival of a magistrate; the polite exterior, the immediate identification of an important superior who might be upset by any overly excessive samurai, the respectful deference balanced against personal pride... yes, if anything the Blood Ape reminds her of a merchant, forced to greet incoming samurai in the absence of his patron.

It is hard to be sure, but Sakura thinks the loyalty held _to_ this ‘Florivet’ is of a similar nature. The Whim of the Wind owns and theoretically runs this facility, but it is the overseer who actually manages it on his behalf. He expects them to bluster, to make some threats, and to demand something of value that he can give Sakura in hopes of making her _go away_.

Sakura blinks as she processes the information, and suddenly a _lot_ of information about the nature of Hell and what sort of mockery it _is_ of Rokugan falls into place. He's a _headsman_ \- one who runs a 'village' as large as a small city, but a headsman nonetheless. Which makes this Florivet his daimyo. And it's all based on... an expectation that the strong do what they will, and the weak obey. They're not in thrall to the realm of Hell as she thought- simply forced into a society based on strength with no care for honour or obligation.

Her gut turns as she realises- this is not so far away from what Rokugan would become if one such as Hida Kisada was allowed to rule- or more importantly, to _take the throne by force_. But... it doesn't change what she has to do. At least, not in the broad strokes. 

Sakura is, however, simply no longer willing to kill this demon simply to make a point. Her expression becomes slightly disdainful, as her voice stays the same, slightly demanding tone it's been since they disembarked.

"You might be of assistance, Headsman Ssark."

Most of her speech is in the language of the spirits- but the title she gives Ssark is in Rokugani. It's not for his benefit- it's for that of Yuzuki and Kisada behind her, to communicate... at least _some_ of her realisation. "We will require that this berth be kept clear of your... underlings while we are docked here, to avoid any... incidents."

She takes on the role of the samurai entering another lord's village, giving demands without care for what disruption she causes the lord. If it... _entices_ Florivet to return with more speed, all the better. "We will also require an accounting of the region in which we are, and which dominions apart from that of your lord's are within a reasonable distance of this port There will also be more that we require, which we will inform you of when it suits us."

"Naturally, Exalted Ones," Ssark says with another bow, "I shall have maps obtained and provided within a few minutes."

The demon retreats, along with most of the other hellspawn within the immediate area. At Sakura's side, Yuzuki makes a thoughtful hum. "Changing the plan already, then?"

"Headsman?" Kisada grumbles, "If that is a headsman I will eat... well. Local gang boss, perhaps."

"Not in the fine details, but in how he responded to me... with Amaterasu's aid, I was able to learn a great deal from how he acted. And in his response to us. He acted like I would expect..."

Sakura frowns. "A headsman of a village who has not seen an honourable samurai in quite some time to act- he expects us to make demands, perhaps inflict petty cruelties, and seeks something of value he can give us so we will _go away_. I have seen similar, at times, in my days as a magistrate. So, I am not changing the plan in broad strokes, but making our impact through... playing to their expectations... might suit us just as well. More, in fact- some of those demons expected us to take over by violence. It seems _typical_ \- but making a public entrance, and leaving our intentions unclear, will drive rumours further as they _question_. It also means that we have maps brought to us instead of having to search this entire place- and I will be checking their accuracy before we go over them."

She tilts her head, and smiles. "Which means that we can determine the location of Hireldi's domain if it is nearby, _without_ revealing to the demons here that is our goal."

After a pause, she hums. "For now, we only respond with violence if someone _does_ make an attempt to provoke... in which case, we make it _abundantly_ clear that restraint does not mean unwillingness to act."

Kisada simply shrugs. He seems... entirely unbothered by Sakura's description, presumably for the simple reason that he has never encountered such a headman or given much thought to how peasants interact with their betters.

"I think I will go and scout," Yuzuki says in an idle tone that does little to disguise how much she dislikes having been cooped up aboard the ship for five days.

"Of course." Sakura tilts her head, before she breathes out softly. "I admit, I was expecting the demons here to be... less free-willed and more under the dominance of the realm of Hell than they seem to be. Instead... this seems almost a mockery of Rokugan, in many ways."

"I wonder if we’ll find mirrors of more distant lands, should we travel far enough," Yuzuki says, an idle thought given words. Then she departs, flesh and metal running together in liquid harmony until at last a hunting hawk sits upon the edge of the ship. It shrieks, once, and then takes flight.

"That," Hida Kisada says in grim tones, "will never cease to be disturbing."

-/-

Perhaps an hour or so has passed, and save for a simultaneous scream from some of the demons across the dockyard a few moments ago, nothing has occurred. Now, as the air fills with the buzzing of insects and the rasp of sand grows closer, Sakura understands why. They were waiting for their liege to return.

Florivet, the Whim of the Wind, sails a ship of brass and bone. It’s sails are made of leather, and its crew are wasps the size of men. Sakura hears the murmur of the Crab at each new sight, torn between amazement and deep-seated paranoia, but her attention is consumed utterly by the demon who stands at the helm.

He is, in form, disconcertingly similar to the shape that Yuzuki adopted near the end of their spar; eight foot tall, with feathered wings and taloned feet, clutching something formed of glass in one hand. Where her wife’s head became that of a hawk, however, the demon’s skull is peculiarly canine, with fangs that catch the wind and fur that smells disturbingly pleasant. 

"AHOY, THERE!" He roars, his ship drawing up alongside (and trapping theirs within the berth), "PERMISSION TO COME ABOARD?"

The smell of bone- and yes, bone _does_ have a smell- does not help with putting Sakura at ease. Being trapped... well, it’s unlikely to be the first uncomfortable situation they’re in here. 

Sakura does hope Yuzuki hasn’t gone _too_ far as she inclines her head, enhancing her senses and trying to perform a trick she learnt in more... intimate circumstances. Under the right conditions, she can smell the quality of someone else's power and their strength, and she does that now- even as she carefully nods.

Her stance is seemingly relaxed- seemingly, but she signals Kisada to be close by, and she keeps her sword close. "If the captain and lord of this port wishes to come aboard, he may."

She does _not_ extend the invitation to any of his crew.

"MARVELOUS!"

The demon crouches, knees bending backwards with an audible _creak_ , and then leaps into the air. A single beat of his wings carries him across the intervening distance, and then the deck is creaking under the weight of his arrival.

Up close, the demon’s presence is undeniable. There is an animal musk that hangs around him, complimented by a selection of what Sakura is quite sure are perfumes, and the beating of the heart within his broad chest is clearly audible, a steady drum-like beat. And his soul is... a distant sound of sand caught up by the wind, of cold nights and fresh forged glass. A pale echo of the barren infinity they crossed to reach this place, but still burning with enough strength to rival or exceed Sakura's own.

Sakura feels a bit more tense, already wishing that Yuzuki were here. "I must say, your headsman said you were away on business. You arrived quite quickly, Florivet."

Her tone is casual, but direct. Something tells her this is not a being who values formalities of politeness as such.

"What can a man do, when he hears tale of such a beauty awaiting his return?" The demon’s voice is a low rumble, as much felt as heard, and when he extends one hand towards Sakura he seems oblivious to the sudden tension that ratchets through the crew, "Please, accept this humble token of my appreciation!"

In his hand, held carefully between two claw-tipped fingers, is a small sculpture made of glass. Sakura can hear the way the wind plays across its elegant curves, how the slight contours in its shape stir the breeze into a musical hum. It is a sharply rendered image of a bird in flight.

A crane.

Sakura's eyes narrow slightly, before she speaks, a small, polite smile on her face. "No token is required, for I am certain there are those more... suited to one of your tastes in this place."

She considered, briefly, rejecting it outright... but no. If they’re going to have this... mockery of Rokugan, let this Florivet go through the proper ritual. Even if it has been a while since Sakura had to go through it- giving gifts to an Empress has a... different protocol.

"Truly? A shame," Florivet shrugs his broad shoulders, and then tosses the sculpture aside.

It shatters on the deck with a sound like raindrops.

"So, Exalted," the demon says, seeming distinctly less jovial now, "what brings you to my domain?"

Fine, Sakura can work with that. Speak in generalities, not specifics, "the whims of fate- we arrived here by chance after leaving the desert surrounding this city. As for why we are _here_... one of your fellow lords has something of great value, and we are here to retrieve it."

As she speaks, she carefully reads his reactions- what does he actually _want_ out of her here...

"Oho? Which one?"

The demon’s motives are... surprisingly easy to read, in fact. His panting breath, the thrum of his heart, the slight flex of his wings that can only be read as _preening_... Florivet was, apparently, entirely literal about returning to the dockyard once word of a beautiful woman reached him. His interest is carnal, and Sakura does not think he will take rejection well.

Sakura's face is smooth, even as she furiously recalculates. She knows what her mother's approach would be, at this point- take full advantage of the carnal desire, use it to get what she wanted out of Florivet, and then leave him hanging. 

The difficulties of the last part of the plan aside, she is not her mother. But she can... not _explicitly_ lead him on, but let him make assumptions for now. "A reasonable question... but I admit, we are new to the realm, and have yet to find our footing, Lord Florivet..."

Sakura draws out the exchange, promising nothing but letting Florivet's own lust draw him onwards. Being cautious in her own revelations, she seeks to draw out from him what exactly he _thinks_ of Hireldi... all without mentioning her name as their goal. She draws of Amaterasu's power in full, using it to bolster her words and know what to say... and exactly how much to lead him on.

Florivet is willing, even eager to talk, and does so with all the skill and passion of an orator. Flicks of his wings serve to emphasize every gesture, in much the same way a courtier might employ their fan, and his voice could command attention in any hall or court. Over the next several minutes, she establishes that Hireldi’s domain is... well, not close, one could hardly use such a term for a place that apparently lies half the width of Rokugan distant, but within reach.

Seemingly idle enquiries establish that Florivet’s opinion of his fellow demon is rather low; something about a comment taken the wrong way and a relationship terminated in violence. Apparently he has taken some pleasure since then in hunting her "metal beasts".

The distance doesn't surprise Sakura, not after... well, all she has learnt of this place. She smiles. "Then, it will please you to know we intend to deprive her of a great treasure of hers."

She's still not... exactly eager to say _what_. Hida's corpse would likely be a mighty prize for any demon.

"Aha, I thought you might be!" Florivet pronounces in some triumph, "none such as you come this far without _some_ kind of grand ambition to drive them."

Nearby, Kisada and the Crab watch with cold, inflexible faces... but Sakura can feel their distaste for the demon ratcheting upwards with every word he speaks.

Frankly speaking, Sakura shares their distaste- but she doesn’t let it show. "Indeed. It’s a task we are eager to perform, o Florivet. As soon as my wife returns, at least- and it will likely involve some damage caused to your rival."

The demon waves off the talk of rivals and damage and so forth with a negligent gesture, before pausing.

"Your... wife?" He cocks his head to one side, deceptively like the wolf he partially resembles, "Hmm. Dare a man hope that your affections are not _confined_ to the fairer sex?"

"If they were not, I am certain you would be considered a fine partner... but I am afraid so."

Sakura is almost casual at this. "The idea of intimacy with men has always left me... shall we say, unenthused. It has nothing to do with the quality of the man themselves. And so, I must leave you disappointed, I am truly sorry to say."

"Ah, truly a tragedy," the demon says with perhaps a bit more dramatic sighing than is entirely necessary, "but fear not! If my own rugged visage does not entice, our Realm is filled with many fine beauties, whatever your preference! Now you are blind, so perhaps the Blood Moon is less appealing than she might be, but if you can tolerate strong women than I can heartily recommend She Who Wears Down the Mountains..."

He flexes his wings in a way that seems disturbingly scandalous.

"Her name is quite appropriate, if you catch my drift..."

Sakura tried to keep the dubious look off her face. "While the idea sounds... tempting... for now, we must remain focused on our mission. Another time, perhaps."

"Perhaps," the demon shrugs, broad shoulders rising and falling, "though I doubt your mission will be so easy as you seem to wish. Dear Hireldi is far too inflexible for my liking, but she is very attached to her works. To steal something from her, in the heart of her domain? You’ll need more than a sharp sword and that brute over there, no matter how well he glares."

Hida Kisada doesn’t even twitch, but the weight of his gaze becomes an almost tangible thing.

Sakura gives Florivet a flat look. "I must dispute your evaluation of my vassal- he is steadfast, and zealous in how he advocates for his own followers."

After a pause, she nods, partially in apology for her slightly harsh words. "But your point is taken. Would you allow us to converse, and speak to you again, o Florivet? My wife should be returned soon, and then we may make our decision on what course to take next."

"Hmph. I might as well," Florivet allows, and Sakura gets the distinct impression that he has rather lost interest in her. Without the lure of a prospective bed partner to keep his interest he now wishes only to have the whole matter resolved and put behind him, that he might return to... whatever he was doing beforehand.

With a single beat of his mighty wings, the demon departs the ship, leaving the deck creaking slightly in his wake.

A few moments later, a much smaller bird arrives and perches on the rail, letting out an inquisitive warble.

Sakura sighs softly, partially in relief, as she gently lets the bird perch on her hand. "Hida-san, let us talk below decks."

-/-

Any room would feel cramped with Hida Kisada standing in it, and it only becomes more so when Yuzuki abandons her disguise and takes human form once more, but it is what they have to work with and so Sakura will simply have to endure.

"Is this the part where you tell me that letting a demon lord lust after you and manipulating information out of him was the honorable thing to do?" The Champion of the Crab says in a voice of living ice.

"This is the part where I say we are _hideously_ outnumbered and this is our clearest route _back_ to Rokugan, and so we need to take the options available to us to gain the information we need and avoid Hireldi knowing we are coming."

Sakura's tone matches Kisada's, as she lets out some of the anger at being ogled she was keeping bottled up. "So, instead of giving the burden to someone else, I took it upon myself to gain what information we needed. Conducting this in a perfectly honourable manner was never going to be possible, Hida Kisada, not in Hell itself. Unless, of course, you think you would have handled that in a better manner? If so, I would _very_ much like to hear it."

"I would have held to the plan," The Champion says, crossing his broad arms, "Killed the demon, demanded information from his surviving servants and pressed on."

"That might have been successful. He was as strong as I, possibly stronger, but all three of us working together would likely have defeated him. Of course, he was in a perfect position to destroy our means of transport, leaving us half the distance of Rokugan to walk. And we would have suffered losses from his demons, as well- you cannot have missed how many he had, ready to fight."

Sakura sighs. "So, instead, I took the path that preserves as much of our strength as possible until we reach Hireldi. I would have dearly likeld to cut him down, but I will not waste the lives of your men."

Kisada snorts, and looks away. He cannot bring himself to agree with Sakura outright, but neither does he have a proper retort, and into that silence Yuzuki steps without a pause.

"I scouted the area," she says with brisk professionalism, "and it's... well. I don't think I can put words to half of it without getting my account banned under the laws of _maho_. Did the demon tell us where to find Hiraldi's domain?"

"Yes, fortunately. It is... close by, as things seem to be reckoned in this place. Which means that it is _only_ about the same distance as Kyuden Hida is from Otosan Uichi- but that is a very reachable distance with this ship."

Sakura hums, tapping her fingers together. "Fortunately, I do not think Florivet will care particularly to hinder us- he and Hireldi are not on good terms." Of course, they can’t expect any _aid_ from him, either... not that Sakura particularly cares for what that aid would cost her. "Hireldi is not lacking in numbers, however- I have a few ideas for how we might be able to deal with that, and I am open to the ideas of others, but first... Yuzuki, I suspect this Realm is simply too large for a simple search of a few hours to find any who are _not_ native to this realm who we might make alliance with, but it is worth asking- _did_ you find anyone of that sort?"

For a moment, Yuzuki is silent.

"There are... humans, here," she says at last, "slaves, I think, but... well. I saw them being led through the street. They won't know much, might not even speak our language, but... that's all I saw. Everything else looked native."

Sakura's first clenches for a moment, as she hears Yuzuki's words. She is silent for another moment, breathing steadily to calm her outrage at the description before she speaks. "It occurs to me that anyone seeking to oppose the lords of Hell would take notice of another group liberating those slaves- and, perhaps, reach out to such a group. It would also likely draw the attention of the lord whose domino the slaves were liberated _from_ , and perhaps draw forces away from, say, a fortress. We will have to unbalance Hireldi _somehow_ before we make our main attack, and this will certainly make an impact."

"Hmph," Kisada grunts, "that was a great many words for something very simple."

"Compassion," Yuzuki says simply, "is a virtue."

Sakura nods. "Indeed."

-/-

Flying through the skies of Hell is an experience unlike any other. The voyage over the desert was challenging and at times dangerous, but the city itself is madness. Columns of hot air rise and fall around the ship, their flow shaped by the mad origami-structure of the cityscape below, and every handful of seconds the ship lurches sideways or drops rapidly as the priests of the Crab attempt to keep the magical energies animating it under control. Yuzuki stands at the prow, guiding the ship with confident words towards its destination, and everyone else generally holds on and tries not to draw the eye.

There are a great many demons.

Some are akin to the wasps that accompanied Florivet, sparkling insectoids wrought of jewels and silk. Others are more avian in form, either pure or blended in mad concert with other lifeforms, and a few hearken to shapes and patterns that have no earthly analogue. They throng in their millions, even this high above the ground, great shoals and floating rivers criss-crossing the burning skies in accordance with whatever strange desires drive them.

Eventually, they reach their destination.

There is a pit in the ground, a great claw-like imprint gouged into the cityscape by some long-forgotten hand, and in its echoing space new construction has been raised. Domes and towers, walkways and bridges... pens. From the shouted commentary it appears the space is lined with dozens or even hundreds of small dome-like structures of a strange glass-like substance, and beneath each one a half-dozen captive humans have been restrained. 

They are praying.

In the language of spirits they give praise to their creators, voices choked with agony and fear lifted in reverent chorus of the damned abominations that keep them enslaved. The steady, rhythmic chants that rise towards Sakura on the wind speak of the magnificence of the Green Sun, the beauty of She Who Calls to Shadows, the brilliance of the End of All Wisdom... a thousand, thousand blasphemies, given voice by unwilling lips. Among the cells stalk demons of every form and function, and whenever a voice in the choir slackens or chokes they are there, forcing the worship to continue with growl and goad and unholy gift. 

There is a dais, near the centre, a stone platform from which the whole spectacle can be seen, and on it stand the masters of this absolute blasphemy.

Sakura's eyes widen slightly as she hears this... this...

"This is an abomination."

Her words are quiet, but she makes no attempt to hide her cold fury. "And we are making it right. _Now_. Kuni-san, bring us low. Yuzuki? You're going to need to carry Hida-san and I down. If any demons go after the ship, you'll need to defend, but if they do not then stay with us."

There is a flurry of activity, then the plan is put into action. Yuzuki's form bursts and twists, silver light and fury. Clawed hands grasp Sakura and Kisada, as gently as they can... which isn't _comfortable_ , but they take no injury. 

The ship swings down, close, close to the pit- and then, the three drop. 

Under any other circumstances, this would be _terrifying_ and _exhilarating_ , but Sakura has little else on her mind right now than her righteous fury. It's scant seconds before they hit the ground- _hard_ , but Yuzuki breaks the fall at the last second. 

Slaves gape at the new arrivals, and even demon slavemasters forget their duties, the clamor of the surrounding city the only noise. Sakura draws her blade. Her voice sounding clear in the tongue of the spirits, the language spoken in this realm. "I am Sakura of Rokugan, the Sword of Amaterasu. And we have come to end this abomination. If any demon here values their lives, they should flee."

Her fury radiates, as her next words echo out across the pit. " _I do hope you stay._ "

The demons on the pedestal turn to face her, moving with an eerie degree of synchronisation. Most are leonine in form; great statue-beasts of stony hides and razor claws, but one is humanoid. Silken robes whisper softly as it turns, a cold flame crackling where a human's head would be, and in its hands it holds a staff.

"Sakura of Rokugan," it whispers, its words the distant echo of primordial truth carried across the aeons, "your challenge is recognised."

With a roar, Hida Kisada throws himself forwards, not waiting for the enemy to move. He is a landslide in motion, an avalanche given flesh, and he makes it barely half a dozen paces before three enormous leonine demons of living stone slam into him from alternate angles and send him spinning across the dais. 

"The presence of the Lawgiver is permissible," the robed demon says in its sepulchre voice, "The others are not. Remove them."

There is a horrible buzzing hum, and from multiple directions winged demons begin converging on the ship still in the air above them. Yuzuki shrieks, the hunting call of a falcon magnified many times over, and leaps into the air to engage them. Distantly, Sakura observe Kisada seize one of the lions by the paw and fling it away from him, but it seems he will be busy for at least a few moments more.

Three demons face her in this moment, and an endless horde beyond. Two of the leonine creatures, already pacing slowly in a circle... and their priestly master, whose staff rings like crystal as it taps the ground.

Sakura pays no heed to the actions of Yuzuki and Kisada- they have their own battles. 

She has hers. She focuses on the motions of her opponents, her eyes closing. A heartbeat. 

Two. 

Then, she steps forwards, almost lazily. Except-

Another heartbeat. 

Sakura is not across the courtyard from the priest. She is just behind him, a gentle smile on her face. "Your permission is not required."

Then- the blade begins to slide into its sheath. The world seems to move in slow motion, only Sakura knowing what just _happened_. 

_click_

There is no blood. There is no gasp of pain or exclamation of shock. 

The Priest simply... comes apart, silvery sand raining out across the dais in an artistic arc. The flame gutters out, the robes fall empty to the ground, the staff shatters into pieces... 

The back of Sakura's neck itches. Someone is watching. Someone, vast and terrible, knows what she has just done.

Sakura cares not. 

She turns, and drops into her stance, one hand on her sword- ready to strike against the next attack.

" **Blasphemer** ," the first of the demon lions growls, already wheeling around to face Sakura.

" **Lawbreaker,** " the second one adds, and there is genuine outrage in its voice. 

They lunge, crossing the distance with great pounding steps, and the ground shrieks at the touch of their claws.

Sakura turns. "You heard his words. He accepted a challenge. He should have been prepared for the outcome."

Her eyes open, as she focuses, running the raw power of Amaterasu's light through her blood, feeling the strain as she moves to deflect each blow. Her sword swings out, still in the sheathe, and she dodges forwards to avoid one great claw, feeling it tear away her kimono- but leaving _herself_ untouched. "Blasphemy is to force prayer like this to those such as your masters. And it has not gone unanswered."

" **This is Malfeas, Exalted. Here he is god and king** " the first of the lions growls, " **and it is his divine wrath you invite**."

There is an unnatural degree of coordination between the two demons. They move to cover one another, to distract and exploit, to strike and retreat with perfect timing.

Sakura waits for her moment, not making any hasty moves or strikes- giving ground where she must, but trying to keep the first Lion in range... indeed, she tries to keep _inside_ its range, making it awkward to effectively hit her. And she waits for the perfect moment to strike...

Which comes shortly. Sakura draws her blade, pushing forwards, as she seeks to slice the gut of the demon in question to drive it back, the radiance of Amaterasu shining around her like the dawn itself.

The hit is true, but the hide of the demon is... if Sakura did not know better, she would say that it is _jade_ , for the ring of impact is all but identical to that produced by her own blade. Regardless, it does little to slow the creature, and already the second one is circling around, lunging for her flank...

Sakura turns, and her blade clicks into its sheathe. She smiles at the demon. 

It's a smile identical to that she gave just before cutting down the priest. 

_As the demon lunges, her sword comes out- and, an instant later, its two body parts hit the floor-_

No. It's just... not an illusion. But as she glows like the sun, her eyes closed, it's certain that's her intent... and for just a second, the demon might begin to _believe_ it.

And for a moment, it does. The demon pauses, and is sent staggering by the blow, sparks fountaining out across the ground like hot iron before the hammer...

She turns again, and leaps- not towards the demon that just staggered back, but towards its _companion_. The sword slides closed with a _click_ \- and then, sweeps out, faster than thought, faster than the eye can see-

There is a shriek of tearing metal, and two pieces of demonic lion collapse to the ground. There is no blood, no viscera, just... metal, smooth and uniform, all the way through.

And Sakura doesn't pause for a second. A foot slams on the floor of the pit. The sword clicks home. 

The last demon hasn't even finished staggering as it looks up, fear in its eyes as it sees the wolf snarling- and then, Sakura is past it. 

_Thud_

The second set of pieces fall to the ground- less than a minute after the first strike. 

Most of that time was spent talking. 

Sakura rises, as she determines whether Kisada requires aid.

Hida Kisada seems to be handling himself well. Of the three demons who attacked him, one is presently little more than a shattered pile of rubble, while the other two circle him at a wary distance, trying to find a way past the vast, overwhelmingly powerful arcs of his tetsubo. 

High above, Sakura can hear Yuzuki crying out as she battles with dozens or even hundreds of lesser creatures, diving in and out of their milling swarms and shredding her way through their ranks. Pieces of severed flesh rain down across the battlefield with disturbing regularity.

Sakura turns, and moves towards the demons attacking Kisada. Against any other opponent- against any _human_ \- she'd hold off, but these are, at the end of the day, demons. 

Her sword flicks out almost casually as she gets within striking distance.

The demons were having difficulty with Kisada alone; against two of the Exalted, they cannot stand, and in the span of a dozen brutal exchanges they too are scattered and broken.

"Not bad," the Champion grunts, hefting his tetsubo back into place on his shoulder, "I guess that fancy iaijutsu of yours isn't _completely_ useless."

Sakura simply smiles slightly, before her head tilts. "We _do_ learn how to fight in battle as well. Now... hm." 

She casually sidesteps a piece of flesh. "Are there more reinforcements coming against Yuzuki and the ship, or is that swarm actually decreasing in number... we will need your men to land before we can properly secure this place. I want those accursed chains broken as soon as possible, but we do not wish for a panic."

She turns to him. "I can start reassuring them- this place uses the language of the spirits, and I heard these slaves being forced to offer blasphemies in it. I imagine they understand it. But that will also be more... _difficult_... while the battle still rages up above."

Overhead, as though prompted by Sakura's words, the horde of airbound demons break and flee, scattering across the skies as Yuzuki circles the still-intact form of their windship. All across the... _prayer-farm_ , the other attendant demons do likewise, yowling in fear as they flee. 

For one single, shining moment Sakura thinks it is her they fear.

And then she hears it. 

The rumbling, roaring, _screaming_ noise that heralded the loss of Togashi. The coming of a sandstorm. And they... they are still but an hour's travel from the edge of the desert. Is that far enough? Are they safe?

Judging by the way every demon in the surrounding area is running as fast as they can in the opposite direction, Sakura suspects the answer is 'no'.

Sakura curses. "Yuzuki! Tell them to get the ship down now! Hida-san, break the chains, get... as many of the slaves onto the ship as we can, and then..."

She pauses for a moment. "The sandstorm. We need to decide, _now_ , whether we can outrun it or whether we put it against the edge of the pit closest to the sandstorm and use that for shelter."

Her words are clear and cutting, audible enough to reach Yuzuki high above, and that is perhaps their salvation.

"Mighty one!" It is one of the slaves, a young man bound in chains at the base of the dais steps, fear and urgency in his voice, "The tunnels! There are tunnels! I can show you, please!"

Sakura walks over. "Kisada! Here!"

She tilts her head, before crouching down. "Then we will get you all out of this place. What is your name?"

The slave is bound hand and foot by sturdy chains of brass. They come apart like so many cobwebs beneath the hands of Hida Kisada, and then the young man is free.

"I don't have one!" The slave responds with a half-mad laugh, "Please, mighty one, the others..."

Overhead, the Crab are bringing the ship down, as the roaring of the storm grows ever-louder.

"Then I name you Jiyu, for you are now free." Sakura clasps a hand on his shoulder. "Come with me."

She springs into actions, with barked orders- oh, Sakura goes along the slaves, convincing them she's here to help, convincing her to trust the Crab- but she also coordinates the Crab, splitting them into teams to break as many chains as possible. She does so with complete efficiency, getting the shugenja to aid with spells, and a few Himura to tell them the group when they are finally out of time. 

She is a blazing pillar of light in the middle of all the commotion, the young man at her side, his words helping her to convince his fellow slaves. _Ex_ -slaves, now. She doesn't treat them as merely objects, however- those who _can_ help in breaking the chains of others, she tasks with doing so. They should take part in their own liberation from this abomination. 

The fury of this realm will not render their efforts naught.

The slaves move quickly, the Crab faster still. Keys are found, chains are broken, men and women on trembling legs are ushered forward by the strident voice of the samurai and the encouraging gestures of the man now named Jiyu, and it is _almost_ enough. 

There remains but one cluster of slaves left - twenty souls, perhaps, too terrified of the coming doom to do more than hunch over their chains and weep. It would be the work of perhaps a minute to free them all, but... the storm is here. It rolls over the land like a physical thing, the scream of broken brass its herald. 

A choice must be made.

Sakura pauses for a moment. "Hida-san, Yuzuki! We handle the last group. Everyone else, into the tunnels, now!"

Sakura arrives at the side of the cowering slaves, subject and wife at her sides, and set to work. _Omoide_ flashes, parting brass and steel with contemptuous ease, and her companions tear chains apart with their bare hands...

The storm arrives.

It smashes into them like a hammer, tearing and shredding, howling and screaming. Sakura can feel her skin tearing beneath the blow of ten million tiny blades, feel the wind tearing strands of hair free of her scalp, feel the _malice_ that guides the storm on its course.

Sakura knows- Amaterasu's gift has given her more ability to resist injury, but she hasn't learnt the specific trick of hardening it against this sort of threat. 

So, she improvises. She floods her body with the light of the sun, letting it course along her skin, battling the blades. Her hair whips in the wind, but doesn't tear free- her skin abrades, but the injuries will go no further than this. She grits her teeth in grim determination. 

"You... will... not... _win_."

Together, the three of them liberate their charges, guiding them across the ground towards the tunnels, and oh! The wind roars and the sand scours and none of it can stop them. The freed slaves cluster around them, following the burning light of Sakura's soul to safety, Yuzuki catches those who stumble, and Hida Kisada brings up the rear, breaking the worst of the wind upon his back to shelter those who are too weak to stand on their own.

And for an eternity the group press onwards, one foot in front of the other, battered by wind and sand and the sound of both... until the comforting darkness of the tunnels that Jiyu found close around them. It takes several minutes more to progress far enough below the ground to find true shelter, for the storm chases them inside and rakes the walls with blasts of wind shaped uncomfortably like claws... but find it they do, and with it the rest of the party, all gathered around in some kind of subterranean dining hall.

Sakura, finally, lets out a breath. "I think the desert _felt_ me killing the one in charge of that abomination. That makes things more difficult..."

She sighs. "Hida-san. We can't bring them with us for the assault on Hireldi's holdings- but I _refuse_ to abandon them, either."

Hida Kisada goes to respond... and is interrupted by the slaves, all of whom have dropped to their knees. They press their foreheads to the floor, and murmur praises in a myriad of tongues, the sounds of their thanks echoing off the metal walls... no. Not thanks.

Their _worship_.

Sakura tilts her head, before stepping forwards, and gently lifting the closest to their feet. "Deference is proper, and I accept your thanks and gratitude... but I am not a god. My actions were achieved through the blessing of Amaterasu- the _true_ sun, not the mockery in this realm that you have been forced to worship. And while my people _do_ give prayer to those blessed by her and her husband who founded our land- our prayers are given much more to her, and to the other Fortunes."

Most of the liberated slaves stop at that, though a few keep murmuring praises beneath their own breath. 

"Mighty One, you have saved our lives," Jiyu says, apparently pushed into the role of spokesman, and... Sakura is uncertain what kind of accent that is on his words, but it is almost musical, "We cannot fight, not as you did, but... perhaps we might assist in other ways? I myself was only taken recently, and know much of the City."

"That would be of great help to us, Jiyu."

Sakura tilts her head, before nodding. "We seek the domain of Hireldi- in particular, where she might keep any of her treasures. After the storm, we will also require transportation."

She pauses. "If you know where we could find either of these things, that would be of most aid to us right now."

"Hireldi... one moment, I beg, Mighty One."

Jiyu spends a short time conversing with his fellow mortals, and then returns to Sakura's side. "The forge-goddess Hireldi is known to us, Mighty One. I believe that these tunnels can lead us into proximity of her domain. Transport is more complex, but likely you could impress one of the Beauteous Wasps into service - they relish the arts of philosophy, and if you can debate them on such, will bear you willingly for the duration."

Sakura... doesn’t let it show, but especially after what she just saw, she can’t say she’s _eager_ to enlist the aid of a native of this realm. On the other hand, they did just lose their fastest method of transport. "If we do remain on foot, how many days will the journey take?"

She pauses. "...or whatever passes for days in this realm."

"There are days, Mighty One... well," Jiyu pauses for a moment, "The Tomescu are cursed with foreknowledge of their own demise, which they witness every day. All but a few of them scream at that time, which has been made a common reference point. It would take us... three screams, I believe? There are waterways beneath the surface that can be piloted, if one is careful enough."

Yuzuki shifts slightly, and Sakura does not need her to speak to understand that the rations their group brought with them are nowhere near enough to feed so many people for any extended period.

Ah. So _that's_ what that scream was, earlier. Sakura shifts a little, her head turning towards Kisada for a moment before she asks her next question. "One last question for now, Jiyu- how available is _safe_ food in this realm? You were taken recently, you said, so you must have had ways to provide for the necessities before then."

"...well _I_ would have to steal or bargain for it from merchants, Mighty One," Jiyu says slowly, "But you could... probably just demand it? Some might even offer it to you as tribute, I think, but... I've never seen a sun-chosen before, but the vast majority of demons are going to be terrified of you."

He pauses for a moment.

"You've... never been to Hell before, have you, Mighty One? Or... learned much of it? Forgive me for my impertinence, but..."

"I have not. And our guide was separated from us by the desert on the journey to here."

Sakura lets out her breath. "Thank you for your aid, Jiyu. For now... make yourselves comfortable."


	4. What You Are In The Dark

The tunnels they take beneath the surface of the demon city are not, by most standards Sakura could name, truly tunnels. They are corridors and alleyways and residences, whole towns and palaces stacked high and layered across one another like a suit of lamellar. There does not appear to be anything resembling a ground level, and when they find a spiralling staircase that reaches far into the depths the only sound that echoes up from the cavernous vaults below is the faint hiss of water.

They are not alone down here, but whatever it is that makes the strange chittering, slithering noises in the distance seems content to give their party a wide berth of several hundred. Sakura hardly needs Kisada to realise how that might change, should any of them get separated from the others.

Not that their guides seem inclined to stray. Instead they huddle close together, leading the samurai steadily onwards even as they debate with one another in quiet voices what to do once their destination is closer and their saviours leave them behind. It does not seem to occur to any of them that Sakura might do otherwise.

Sakura gives quiet directions in Rokugani for the Crab to make sure- _gently_ \- that there are no stragglers, just in case. As she hears the quiet discussion... she grimaces, and speaks up softly in Rokugani to Yuzuki- although Kisada is close enough she suspects he can hear. "They think we're going to abandon them. No, it's more... they haven't even considered the possibility that we _won't_."

She pauses. "I have no intention of doing so, but we will need to work out quite quickly what in this realm is safe for people to eat."

Several of the Hiruma slip away at different intervals, clambering up towards the surface to confirm their location and perhaps identify possible sources of food and water. To the mild surprise of at least some of the former slaves, none of them vanish in the process, though exactly how much experience they must have with Hell to be so sure-footed is another question entirely.

They are perhaps half a day into the journey when this unsteady equilibrium changes. The scuttling things in the dark are still keeping well clear of the group, but... there is, judging by the echoes, an open chamber somewhere up ahead of Sakura, and sitting in that chamber is a humanoid figure. 

_Tap. Tap. Tap._

Nails on metal.

Sakura's head tilts. "Something ahead. Or someone. Hold, a minute."

She breathes in, and out for a minute. Then, she sniffs the air, opening up her awareness of the world. She's aware of Yuzuki, and the flash of silver smell. She's aware of Kisada, who... smells like a mountain, oddly enough. But they're not who she's focusing on. Her sense of smell tries to filter out all the smells she knows already, every last person in their group (and even the smells of the _things_ scuttling around them)- and she focuses on the figure in the chamber ahead. 

What's waiting for them, exactly?

In form, the one who waits for her is... no. That's impossible. And yet...

Sakura can feel the warmth of her flesh. Hear the rustle of silken robes, so familiar and yet so alien, the whisper of soft hair spilling down across a bared shoulder. She can smell the perfume and the lingering echo of fine tea, savoured long ago, the sharper edge of more advanced cosmetics. A woman, a courtier of Rokugan, sits with perfect posture beneath the surface of the demon city, an ornate tea set at her side.

It is a mask, paper thin and brittle, and there is _nothing_ beneath.

No scent. No sound. No taste or texture, no breath or heat, no soul. An endless, yawning abyss in the form of a mortal woman, a hunger that would swallow the world. 

"Well, come on then," the thing that wears the face of Bayushi Kachiko purrs softly, "don't you know it's rude to keep a lady waiting?"

"What."

Sakura's _on_ breaks completely for a moment, as her expression is purest shock. Bayushi Kachiko can't be _alive_ \- oh, wait, no, it's something wearing her face. 

Then, her mind catches up with her and _oh dear fortunes that is not better what is that_.

She swallows, her throat dry as she mostly composes herself. "It bears the form of Bayushi Kachiko."

There's a pause. "It is not Bayushi Kachiko in any way, shape or form. Keep the people we rescued back, if you will."

There's a few moments and she can _feel_ her heart pounding. "In fact... Yuzuki, with me, please. Everyone else... stay back. Wait for my signal, but otherwise *do not interfere.*"

"Are you mad?" Kisada growls, stepping up and balling his hands into fists, "You don't talk to something like this, you kill it or you run, and..."

He stops, frozen in place, and Sakura can hear the faint echoes of words coming from the chamber, but... they are not for her ears, and so she does not hear them.

"...go," the Champion of the Crab says hoarsely.

Sakura nods shortly, before she starts to step forwards, her gaze fixed in front of her. As Yuzuki comes by her side, she slips her hand into that of her wife's. 

She feels very small as she walks to meet the thing wearing Kachiko's face.

Yuzuki stays at Sakura's side, her hand firm and sure in her wife's, and though she pauses briefly at the sight of what awaits them she does not fear. Her warmth and her courage should be inspiring, should be a source of support, but... she doesn't know. She sees only a stranger wearing the face of a dead woman, not the void that lies beneath. 

The chamber is some kind of grand audience hall, the kind of echoing vault where lords and masters would receive dignitaries from across the realm. There is a dais at one end, and atop it sits an imposing throne moulded from living brass, but the woman waiting for Sakura shuns its imperious form for the comfort of the lowest step. There she sits, legs folded demurely beneath her, a cup of fragrant tea in her hands.

"Hello, Sakura," the demon says in a soft and pleasant voice, "have you had rice today?"

Sakura breathes a few more times, tying her blindfold over her eyes before she bows respectfully, and sits opposite the demon. It... helps conceal her expression, helps her put on the mask. 

Somewhat. She truly has no expectations, sniffing slightly to try and determine what the tea is, but... she doesn't know what this thing wants. She falls back on familiar traditions, however. "I- I have. It was filling."

Truth. They _did_ have rice before they arrived... Fortunes, it seems like more than a single day.

She's still badly rattled, however, and can't help but show it.

"Wonderful. And this must be Yuzuki," Kachiko says, inclining her head to Sakura;s wife. Her mannerisms are perfect, the epitome of a courtier trained in the Scorpion style, "You look lovely, dearest one. Such a yearning..."

"...my thanks," Yuzuki manages to force out, evidently torn between drawing back into the stiff formality of her training or a more confident mirror of the woman across from them, "I am afraid I do not know you, however."

"Oh?" The thing that is not Kachiko smiles slightly, "Are you sure of that?"

"That Bayushi Kachiko might have left a ghost behind would not be surprising. But I... caught a scent of your true nature, and it is completely unlike that of a ghost- and I suspect that one such as you would... have left a strong impression. This one would know your name, so that I might know how to properly address you."

Truth. Also, putting a name to the _thing_ might... help, at least. 

Maybe. And there was no harm in seeking the politest way to address such a thing.

"Ah, names," the demon says with a smile, "So _limiting_ , and yet... people do seem fond of them. Very well. I shall tell you a story."

She pauses for a moment, taking a sip of the tea in her cup, and then speaks.

"In the beginning, there was only chaos. And from the chaos came the world-makers, who forced order upon madness and laid their designs into the fabric of the world. And they said there would be light and heat and motion, that things would birth and die, that time would tick and the sun would hang in the sky forever more. And I said 'why'."

At Sakura's side, Yuzuki has gone still and silent, thrumming with tension. She cannot sense the depths of the thing before them, but the implications of such a story are enough.

"And the sun and moon went forth and they named every living thing, and all that did not live besides. And I went with them, ever in their shadows, where they could not look. And then they returned to their heavens, and I remained behind, in this world that they had made." The demon that has no name says with a smile, "And ever since that day, men have called me Noh."

Sakura swallows. 

Well. That. Is a thing. "In that case, Noh, this one is honoured to meet you."

She pauses for a moment, a story that Togashi once told her sticking in her mind- before she continues. "Might this one ask why you have taken an interest in us?"

Noh taps a finger against the side of her cup, seeming to listen with intent to the faint chime that it produces.

"You have in your company a herd of souls," she says with what sounds distressingly like approval, "liberated from a prayer-farm when one crossed your path. The existence of such a thing offended you, did it not?"

"How could it not?" Yuzuki grinds out, one halting word after another, "To see so many, bound to such vile ends..."

"Just so," Noh inclines her head, then leans in, her voice dropping as though to whisper a precious secret, "It offends me as well."

Sakura nods, cautiously. "It was not our reason for coming to this realm, but we could not simply stand by upon seeing such an atrocity. The former slaves have... they are not used to such an attitude. From anyone."

There's a hint of a question, there, not that Sakura would outright voice such a thing under these circumstances. "They expect us to abandon them."

"They live by the laws of Hell," Noh shrugs lightly, "They will labour for their demon lords until their bodies give out, and then their souls will be bound in place and labour for longer still. They will do this because they are weak, and it is the law of Hell that the weak must serve the strong."

"And with no expectation for the strong to protect the weak."

Sakura's eyes narrow slightly, behind her blindfold. "Compassion is a virtue sorely lacking in this realm, it seems. Hopefully, once we have brought them out from this place we will be able to show them there is a better way."

"Compassion," the demon speaks slowly, as though tasting the word upon her tongue, "Courage. Duty. Courtesy. Honesty. Sincerity. _Honour_. So many chains, to wear like robes."

Sakura tilts her head for a moment, before she speaks, very carefully. "And through those, we have _purpose_. Beyond simply thinking of one's strength, and how one can use it to chain others into doing one's own selfish bidding."

"And have you never once resented them?" Noh asks, her whispers sinking beneath Sakura's thoughts like daggers, "Never once thought of simply casting them aside, and doing as you thought was _right_?"

Yuzuki's breath catches in her throat, and Sakura remembers old words and older dreams. A girl who dwelled on the idea of simply leaving, and vanishing beyond the horizon rather than allowing herself to be caged.

"You say that as if it were so easy," she whispers in return, her voice hoarse from carefully suppressed feeling, "to know right from wrong, to act correctly in all cases..."

"Is it not?" Noh seems amused, somehow.

Sakura frowns, as she considers- before she smiles, slightly shakily but... that's not due to hesitation about the correctness of her answer. "Once. A time that I am certain you know of, given the form you take. And I did so, and so I am Empress. The choice fully within the bounds of bushido would have been to reject Bayushi Shoju's plan, but that would have been disaster. But on the whole... bushido has been a _comfort_ and _guide_ to me, not a chain. That is not to say it is perfect, or it cannot be improved- but if you shatter a thing, you often remove the chance to improve on it."

She tilts her head, opening her mouth for a moment- before remembering exactly _what_ she's talking to. That... would be a bit too far.

"Well," Noh chuckles, "no one is perfect. Still, you please me, Sakura of Rokugan, and so I will aid you. In recovering the body of your ancestor, in liberating those slaves from hell... perhaps even in defending your homeland from the empire that seeks to crush it."

Sakura's breath catches at how _casually_ Noh knew all of these things... but, cautiously, she speaks. "...and what would you wish for in return?"

She doesn't forget where she is, after all.

"Mm... ah, you fear to be indebted to me?" The demon inclines her head, "Sensible. If you would have a price of me, then it is this; set my daughter free."

Sakura's eyes widen. "Shosuro. That. May not be within my abilities- the one who knows her location was... separated from us by the Desert, and it is possible he is dead."

She doesn't say the next bit- that she is... _hesitant_ to release what might be a danger upon Rokugan. On the other hand... being in debt to this one would be a very, _very_ bad idea. As would be reneging upon the debt.

"You are a resourceful woman," Noh says, and her voice is silk and poison, "And if your conscience demands she die upon being released, I would not hold it against you."

"...that will depend a great deal on what state she is in when she is released. However... I will humbly accept your aid within Hell, Lady Noh."

"Excellent," the demon says, and claps her hands together but once. 

The tables groan beneath the weight of food and drink, and the hard brass of the floor is softened by silk and thick cloth. Soft music drifts through the air, and in every door but one the distances between steps twists and becomes as shade.

"Rest here, then, with your subjects," Noh says warmly, "And when you are ready, step into the shadow and be born to the halls that you seek."

-/-

Shortly thereafter, with Noh departed (if not _necessarily_ gone) and the party cautiously trying out the food, Sakura finds Hida Kisada lurking against one of the far walls. 

He is not touching the food. He is not drinking the water. He appears to have kicked away the silken cushions so as to stand untouched upon a section of bronze floor. 

He still holds himself like a man expecting an attack at any moment.

Sakura understands _perfectly_. Walking over and standing next to him on the brass, she holds out a cup of _sake_ , with another in her other hand. "From our supplies."

The Champion takes the sake with hands that somehow do not tremble, and lifts it to his lips with motions as steady as any kata.

"To be a Crab is to know that the enemy cannot be defeated," he says at last, "For if something like that came to our lands there is nothing we could do to stop it. Knowing that, and experiencing it first hand, are..."

Sakura nods. "Something entirely different. I’ve been in a position where I knew an enemy was coming I could not defeat before."

She tilts her head. "And then Amaterasu blessed me, and I cut down the summoner before it came through to the real world. But this..."

She shakes her head. "We were... lucky. Its nature seems to be to... to _object_. To what does not matter- if we were in the world of mortals, it would be a deadly foe, but _here_... we work against Hell, and so it approves, for it has nothing to struggle against but Hell itself."

She pauses. "But yes. If it had decided to attack... I was able to sense its nature and power, and that memory will... not rest easily."

"Something like that would not have attacked with blade and fang," Kisada says grimly, his tone distant, "It would have poured poison in your ears and whispered sweet words, and then you would have come back and murdered me, imagining that you had no choice in the matter."

He takes another swallow of the _sake_ , though one of his constitution will surely not be impeded by the quantity that Sakura carries with her. 

"It has happened before," he says after a moment, "and it will happen again. Our only salvation is that the world is vast, and that the stronger a demon happens to be, the harder it finds to slip the bonds of its own world to walk among our own."

"Then it must be exceedingly hard for that one to do so, for it must stand close to the pinnacle of their kind."

Sakura shakes her head, sipping her own sake with much more care. "When we get back, and we have the funeral for Hida-no-Kami. Make it a public affair, give the Yasuki equal place with the other Families. Make a _point_ of it. I’ll make certain to have my speeches with the same emphasis. The Crane won’t like it, but especially with an Empress coming from their own backing it, they will get the point- and it _won't_ be the open slap in the face that simply hosting Imperial Winter Court in Yasuki lands would have been. Especially with the Iron Cranes... you might get a legitimate softening of attitudes."

She pauses, then shrugs. "You were not wrong, back then. It’s time for this particular feud to be done with."

"I doubt it will be so easy," Kisada grumbles, and does not look at her, "but I suppose it cannot hurt to try."


	5. The Forge-Flame

Suspicion comes easily in a place like this, worrying at the mind and will with thoughts of threat and betrayal, but in the end they manage to get some measure of rest all the same. The chamber is never truly silent, for even this far beneath the surface the walls hum with musical echoes and the tramp of ten thousand damned feet, but its not that much worse than an army camp or city by night, and so slumber takes Sakura.

When she wakes, it is to find Yuzuki kneeling at her side, fully armed and armoured.

"We're ready to move," she says softly, for fear of waking the slumbering freedmen nearby, "Kisada has spoken to his own warriors, and they are prepared to guard this place until we return or their supplies run out."

Sakura nods, rising. She fixes up her kimono, securing Amaterasu's gift around her waist- all the armour she needs. "The Shugenja will need to reassure the freedmen that we will not abandon them- they'll be able to talk to them, at least."

She takes a deep beath, securing her blades by her side, then takes Yuzuki's hand, squeezing it gently. "And may the Fortunes bless us this day."

They don't head out immediately, of course - there are the normal matters of food and hygiene to tend to, and a brief prayer to whatever fortunes can hear them in this place - but soon enough Sakura is standing with her two companions near the entrance to the chamber, where the seemingly infinite corridors stretch out into the distance.

"So..." Yuzuki says, uncertainly, "She said... step into the shadows?"

Sakura sighs. "Indeed. Unless we wish to walk all the way to her domain..."

She doesn't at all _trust_ Noh, but any other path.... would likely anger her. And certainly leave them with very few options. So, she...

She pauses pauses. "Someone will have guide me to exactly _where_ the shadows are."

"Well, that could be a problem," Yuzuki says with a snort, "Because as far as I can tell there _are_ no..."

The temperature in the room drops, quite suddenly, a winter breeze in the middle of a summer night. What was a corridor in front of them is now just... open space, rising up and dropping away to some further extent than Sakura's senses can easily define.

"Oh." Yuzuki says in a small voice.

Sakura sucks in her breath very so slightly. She knows _exactly_ how her wife feels. "Forwards, then."

It seems a simple thing. Just a single step, letting the darkness take her, and then... she is falling. 

The cold wind howls at Sakura, icy fingers tracing patterns up and down her arms. Shapes of sparrow and mountain loom and fade, scale rasps against scale, the stench of reptiles fills her nose...

And she is elsewhere, standing in a hallway of brass and stone, buffeted by waves of heat and the distant sound of falling hammers. Yuzuki is by her side, dropped into the low and stable crouch of a seasoned warrior, and Kisada...

Hida Kisada is gone.

Sakura curses. "Of _course_ it does not simply aid us..."

Well, there's nothing for it. Sakura rises from her crouch, her hand resting gently on the hilt of her blade, ready to draw as she extends her senses, trying to work out where she _is_ \- and if there's a clear route to their goal.

It takes Sakura a moment to place herself, to understand what she can hear and feel and smell and put it into context, but... they are in a narrow passageway, wrought from metal and stone, that twists and turns without thought or design through the larger structure all around them. The echoes tell of numerous other such passages, and the hammering of metal against metal in the distance is uniquely reminiscent of the war-forges of the Kaiu.

And then there is the _heat_. It is everywhere, battering at Sakura's mind and body in endless waves, drying the sweat from her brow and setting her throat to itching. She can hear metal that has melted and run as water, smell smoke from a hundred different sources, feel the harmony and purpose underlying it all.

Hireldi, it seems, has built her forge into something not unlike the volcanos found on Rokugan's northern borders.

Sakura swallows, tilting her head. "There's a central chamber... up ahead, I think. That's likely to be where _Hireldi_ is... but whether Hida-no-kami's body is there, I cannot tell for certain. It's likely our best option, however."

"Then let us move," Yuzuki rasps, "The heat here would kill a mortal in an hour, and... I don't know how tough you _are_ , Sakura, but I'd like to be gone before too much longer."

"Quite."

She pauses for a moment. "Yuzuki. If I _should_ fall, my order as Empress to you- survive and make it back to Rokugan. If I do not return, Aimi- and _Rokugan_ \- will require a regent. And a champion. That said... as your wife, let us win and return together, victorious."

"Well, obviously I can't die yet," Yuzuki says lightly, "I haven't written a poem."

There is a tension in her despite those words, the sort of thing that tells Sakura her wife would rather not speak of such things at all, but... well. She knows Sakura well enough by now not to try arguing otherwise. Together, they head onwards.

-/-

At the heart of the volcano, where the heat is the strongest and rivers of molten metal flow together in grim mirror of a mountain lake, there is a chamber. In shape it is a diamond, perfect and measured, and in the centre there hang great platforms of volcanic rock, suspended a matter of inches above the lake of molten steel just beneath.

Sakura doubts the sun itself would feel so hot.

All around the edges of the chamber, cut into every face and facet of the diamond, are row upon row of horizontal steps, and on those steps rest statues of breathtaking skill and workmanship. They depict men and women clad in a thousand foreign fashions, gods and monsters bearing weapons of dreadful potency, and strange abstract representations of wind and waves and shadow caught in light. Each and every one of them faces the same direction - at the centremost platform, where a broad-backed throne rests upon a dais. 

On the throne sits Hireldi, Demon Lord of Hell.

"So," she says, in a voice of melting stone, "you are the one that the priest-thing spoke of?"

"Ah, we are _expected_."

Sakura steps out, her face neutral, her blindfold back over her eyes- if it helps conceal her emotions as she fights, she could use the advantage. The heat is overwhelming- but Sakura doesn't let it bother her, instead breathing steadily. "I am Sakura, Chosen of Amaterasu. If your... _priest_ spoke of another, my sincerest apologies for the disappointment."

"Sakura... a name that means 'flower', yes?" 

The demon is, at first, little different from any of the statues that line the walls to her sanctum... but Sakura has only to remain in her presence for a moment to see the lie in that artful facade. The outer shell may take the form of a humanoid woman, long of limb and garbed in brazen robes, but it is exactly that - a shell. Within is the demon itself; a flickering pillar of heatless flame that twists and writhes with every moment.

"Cherry blossoms, yes."

Sakura isn't fooled- her hand remains on the hilt of her sword, the words... meaningless, really. 

They both know there will soon be battle, Yuzuki just behind Sakura as she steps forwards. Both of them at the ready.

"Mm. That's good to know. I will need to find some reference materials, before I start my work" the demon says thoughtfully, "but do not worry. I am sure I can find something appropriate. You will fit right in."

Ah. So _that's_ it. Sakura's expression turns cold. "So, that is what those statues are. Before we are done, I will have you tell me which is Hida's. And as for myself... I will _not_ allow you to turn me into your twisted art."

They have reached the base of the stairs, and now ahead of them there lies only a long series of floating stones that trace a path to the dais and the throne upon it. 

"A shame," Hireldi says with a chuckle, rising to her feet, "but then, I would not have been able to bargain in fairness in any case. You slew one of the Priests, after all, and now all of Hell wishes for your skull. I could have called an army to my side with a word, but instead, I think I will make use of the one I have already obtained."

She speaks a word, a horrible sound that holds its roots in every language and none... and all across the chambers, statues stir to life and begin to move. Swords are drawn, granite fists raised high, and in the span of a single heartbeat a legion stands ready to defend its mistress. 

"Come then, Sun-Queen. Show me your worth, that I might testify to it in stone and steel for millennia to come."

Sakura drops into her stance, her focus intensifying. "I will show you more than that."

The legion of warriors is a distraction, the true threat being Hireldi- but that does not mean it's _no_ threat. With a nod, Yuzuki draws her scimitar, holding it at the ready position as she steps close to Sakura, watching her wife's back. Sakura herself... this is a pitched battle, it seems, not a thing of Iaijutsu. Sakura draws her sword, the blade gleaming in the green sunlight, and she holds the sheathe in a reverse grip, ready to block incoming attacks. 

She can hear every statue, she can hear the creaking of Yuzuki's armour, she can hear the flickering fire within Hireldi herself. 

She is ready.

Sakura, as the battle starts, breathes deeply, dropping further into her stance- one ready to defend against attacks from any direction. She's perfectly willing to let Hireldi come to her, in this case. 

Yuzuki, behind her... she feels the _change_ , one oh-so-familiar to her now. In mere moments, she stands tall, a silent challenge against Hireldi and her army, her wings spread wide and her claws ready to strike.

Hireldi makes a gesture with one stone-clad hand, and from the lake of burning metal arises a long polearm of some foreign design. The demon grasps it firmly, standing before her throne... and then sweeps it back and forth in the air, running through a complicated system of movements that remind Sakura oddly of the war-fans that the Lion employ for battlefield signalling. 

Then the legion of stone automatons are on the move, and she realises that the comparison was all to accurate. Sakura and Yuzuki have just enough time to reposition before they fall upon the couple like a wave.

There is no skill behind the blades of stone and metal that come scything in from all directions, no will or passion behind the unmoving faces, but one does not necessarily need either, when every blow is delivered with pillar-smashing force.

Sakura doesn't directly stop many of the blows- instead, the scabbard of her sword deflects, moving blows away, she ducks under blows, and simply... _isn't_ where they strike. They might not have traditional stances as such, but the grinding of stone tells Sakura more clearly than mere sight ever could what they're about to do and where they're about to strike. She doesn't let their blows go unchallenged, either, punishing any overextension with a return strike from her own sword, setting up for when she can counterattack. 

Yuzuki, meanwhile, in her divine beast-form, takes a... more _direct_ approach. She matches the statues, strength for strength, knocking aside their blows- even smashing one statue to pieces, as she bides her time, ready to strike back.

"Ah... I recognise that style," Hireldi says with a laugh, "No over-enthusiastic amateur here, it seems."

"Do you, now."

Sakura leaps forwards, her soul blazing as she closes the distance between her and Hireldi. The demon might be a lethal personal combatant, but letting her issue _orders_... that would only end poorly. She trusts Yuzuki to handle the statues, and runs _up_ one, leaping into the air and using it as a platform- and as she descends, the sheath flickers out, aimed _directly_ at Hireldi's head. It's not meant to _damage_ the demon, not exactly- instead, Sakura seeks to understand what exactly she's _facing_ here. Does Hireldi actually care about a strike to her face, does she stagger from the hit... is she, in short, facing something that can actually feel pain.

_Omiode_ sings as it strikes, a lightning-quick cut at the demon's face... echoed moments later by a discordant echo as Hireldi reaches up and _catches_ the incoming strike with a bare hand.

"This is an excellent weapon," the demon notes, holding Sakura motionless in the air for one eternal instant, studying the blade with an expert's eye, "I think I will keep it."

The shaft of her long halberd strikes Sakura in the gut with meteoric force, seeking to tear the katana free of the Solar's grasp...

And just like that, Sakura's hands are empty. _Omoide_ flies through the air and lands with a rasping clatter on the stone beyond. It slides, precariously close to the edge of the platform, half its length jutting out into empty space.

And it does, Sakura's eyes widening as she is thown away. She skids across the platform... and she raises her hand. " _Omoide_ is my blade, demon."

The sword's slide reverses. And it flies through the air, right past Hireldi, and returns to Sakura's grasp. "I will not be parted from it so easily."

And then, Yuzuki joins in. She saw how her wife was so easily disarmed- and so, she, whose weapons are a part of her, is a far better opponent for the demon. Even as Sakura turns back towards the statues, Yuzuki beats her wings, and carries herself towards Hireldi- and her claws sweep down, _bending_ in the same way that her limbs bent against Sakura. She doesn't say a word, instead fighting with the classic Utaku silence- but her strikes are no less ferocious for that.

Hireldi grunts, turning her halberd into a smooth series of textbook defensive motions. Almost literally textbook, in fact, the style of someone who learned their combat skills through repetitive training rather than bloody-handed experience.

Steadily, she is forced back... and then, from all corners of the chamber, her reinforcements arrive. Men and women wrought of brass charge across narrow rows of stepping stones, winged automatons make buzzing attack runs against flank and side, and loyal soldiers cast in stone step forwards to defend their mistress.

Yuzuki is engaged with Hireldi for the most part- so Sakura steps forwards to stand against the soldiers. She works furiously, her sword and sheath sweeping out to fend off the soldiers, sweat running down her body as she stands to defend her wife, to keep this as a _duel_ \- a duel in which Yuzuki has the advange. She doesn't stop them _all_ \- she's only one woman- but she makes a fair effort of it. 

Inwardly, she curses Noh for sending Kisada elsewhere- apart from anything else, he has the _right_ to be here, and frankly he would have been of great help here. But only for a moment, for the pressure leaves little room for anything else. So, instead, she empties her mind. 

Yuzuki, meanwhile, takes full advantage of her armour- instead of turning to parry those few blows that get through she simply moves so they deflect off her armour. She doesn't take the pressure off Hireldi, instead trusting in her wife.

The blows fall like rain, and are swept aside just as easily... but they serve their purpose. They buy Hireldi a moment's space, a heartbeat's worth of breathing room, and she uses it well. 

She steps back, braces her long weapon in two hands, and thrusts. A miss. Another thrust. Another miss. And another and another and another, a hail of blows that only grows faster, a river of steel and murderous force that leaves Yuzuki with scarcely any space to move, to defend, to retaliate...

Yuzuki deflects some of the blows, starting to become pressed herself... but, of course, her moonsilver armour _also_ deflects the blows. And, after a few moments, it becomes obvious that is her plan- she lets enough blows deflect off the armour harmlessly, angling her body, taking advantage of the formulaic, _unexperienced_ nature of Hireldi's kata. She presses forwards, seeking to push Hireldi away from Sakura, away from her men. 

Still, completely silent.

Sakura, meanwhile, pauses for a moment- then she starts to _move_. 

Her sword flickers, her sheathe lashes out. Each strike _shatters_ a stone statue, as she takes pleasure in shattering all of Hireldi's works. At some point, she finds herself yelling in outrage as she makes each strike, and carves... well, she'd call it a _bloody_ path through the army. 

But there's no blood- merely the shattered remains of statues.

And meanwhile, Yuzuki _looms_ , somehow managing to tower over Hireldi. She waits for the perfect moment, the demon's strikes finding no purchase in armour. 

And then, she grabs- not at _Hireldi_ , no. Her talons _shift_ , looping around Hireldi's polearm with remarkable speed. 

There's a moment. 

Yuzuki _smiles_ at Hireldi. 

Then, her foot lashes out, seeking to knock Hireldi away from the polearm, in a mirror of the way Hireldi had disarmed Sakura earlier.

The foot slams home, talons digging into stone... and stays there, as Hireldi reaches up with her free hand and seizes the Lunar by the leg.

For a long moment they wrestle, pitting strength against strength, seeking control of the weapon and the brawl, stone and metal shrieking as it contorts beneath the force...

But then, Yuzuki grabs the weapon away, throwing it towards the edge of the arena in a parallel to Hireldi's earlier move on Sakura. 

Except she isn't as concerned as Hireldi was about _preserving_ said weapon. 

It skids right over the edge. 

And down.

"Hmph," Hireldi growls, watching her weapon go sailing away and over the edge of the platform, "how troublesome. But, since you insist..."

She does not punch, or kick, or attempt to grapple her foes. Instead she lifts one foot high into the air... and brings it down with all the force of a falling star. The sound of the impact is a physical thing, shaking Sakura to the bone.

Then the platform collapses, shattering into pieces like so much glass, and she finds herself falling headlong into a vat of molten steel.

Sakura's eyes widen, and as soon as the foot comes down, she snatches her wakizashi out of her _obi_ and throws it to Yuzuki.

Then, she falls. She has only a few moments before she hits the vat- and so, she calls upon Amaterasu's power in the same way as before, flooding her body with the power of the sun, pressing it against her skin. She curls up just before she hits, and _Fortunes_ she can feel the heat like nothing else she's ever known- but she knows, absolutely- that Yuzuki will pull her out. She just has to endure until them, and make sure she stays at the surface.

The latter part of her ambitions may, of course, be something of a challenge.

Hireldi cuts through the boiling metal like a shark beneath the waves, rivulets of molten steel drawing patterns across her stony flanks, plumes of smoke and ash rising into the air with every thrashing blow. She has lost her blade, itself buried somewhere within this burning hell, but she still has her hands and her monstrous strength. They reach out, grasping for Sakura, seeking to drag her down and throttle the life from her burning corpse.

Sakura feels most of what's covering her burn away, even as _she_ remains unburnt. But that's a secondary concern right now- and it almost _helps_ her, gives her more to feel the currents of the metal with. Sound is... not something she can rely on, so instead she focuses on her sense of touch. Every motion within the metal _does_ cause a change, however slight. 

And that's all that Sakura needs. A moment before Hireldi reaches her, Sakura's blade lashes out, faster than should be possible in this sluggish metal, seeking to cut Hireldi's palms if she doesn't pull back- and with her hands slashed, _hopefully_ she'll find it more difficult to grasp Sakura.

And... it works, buying Sakura a moment of time as Hireldi flinches back, growling a guttural curse.

The metal is still _hot_ , scorching hot, and Sakura is aware that it's now almost entirely against her bare skin now. She takes the moment of time, making for the surface so she can _take a breath_ \- and so Yuzuki can see her, of course. And Amaterasu's power still courses through her, wrapping around her like protective cloak and beacon all in one, the gift the only thing remaining unburnt. 

Still, she knows- she can't do anything _here_. She has to trust in Yuzuki to get her out- and hold out until then. So... she does, settling in with grim determination to hold out from the heat and Hireldi's attacks both.

And the rescue comes a moment later. Yuzuki might not have Sakura's hearing, but what she _does_ have is eyes that see as clearly as any falcon. Not that it's needed- Sakura glows like a beacon.

Yuzuki dives. Her wings fold against her body, as she covers the distance down in a matter of seconds, uncaring of the heat. For a moment, it seems like she might plunge into the lake of metal- but no. She pulls up, skimming the surface, uncaring of the heat when her wife is in this sort of danger. A beat of her wings, and Yuzuki comes to almost a stop in a maneuver impossible for any true bird- but she stops only for a moment. 

Sakura, hearing her wife clearly, kicks out just as she comes close, her body lifting out of the molten metal- and Yuzuki grabs on, her silver claws dissolving away so she can take hold of her wife. And then- she lifts Sakura up. And her wings beat, seeking to take them away from the lake.

Sakura is lifted from the vat, thin streams of molten metal cascading in her wake, and the heat returns to being simply uncomfortable rather than agonizing. 

Below, she hear a series of muttered curses, followed by a sizzling detonation as Hireldi pulls herself free from the metal. The demon moves quicker than seems possible for something of her bulk, each step covering yards as she strides away from the audience chamber and into one of the tunnels leading deeper within.

Their creator gone, the surviving stone automata begin slowly plodding their way back to their positions among the displays, their numbers considerably reduced.

Sakura sheathes her sword as Yuzuki pulls her up to carry her more effectively, then brushes some of the remaining metal off her. "...I can't feel any burns, but I've heard of burns so bad they're beyond pain. Before we go after her..."

There's a pause as Yuzuki looks her over. "You're looking a bit red. Your hair's... it's kind of singed at the ends. Well, a _lot_. And, well. Clothes. Gone. Apart from the obi, at least. But... no burns."

Sakura lets her breath out, giggling softly in a small moment of relief. "You carrying me naked, flying through the air... not something I was expecting to do here. But I still have the things that matter. Amaterasu's gift still gives me as much protection as ever, I still have my sword. And Hireldi seems to be retreating now her ploy has failed. If we follow her... we might find Hida-no-kami."

There's a quick nod... then Yuzuki flaps her wings, and with Sakura holding on tight, swoops down after the demon, Sakura identifying the tunnel they need to follow precisely, and listening carefully for the direction that Hireldi has gone.

The tunnel turns sharply not thirty paces from the hall, descending in a twisting spiral deeper into the complex, diverging into side tunnels and alternate passageways without number. You follow doggedly, pursuing the demon Hireldi through echoes and the scent of heat-scorched stone. 

At last the spiral ends, flattening out into another tunnel leading towards some kind of great metal door. Strange crystalline rods line each side of the path, like naginata wrought from glass and planted point-up in twin columns along the line. 

"You are _remarkably_ persistent," the demon says from her position at the far end of the hall, turning away from operating what Sakura assumes to be some kind of lock, "and apparently resilient enough to survive a bath in molten metal. Not all of my kind could say the same."

Sakura drops to the ground, the metal hot against the bare soles of her feet- but not enough to burn, not after _that_. Drawing her sword, she doesn’t move to actually attack, not just yet. "We're not leaving until we have what we came for, even if I have to pull this entire fortress down to do it."

She smiles. "As for the metal... Amaterasu's blessing was equal to the task. So, I will ask you this once more- where is the body of Hida-no-Kami? Or, if you don’t know the title, he was blessed by..."

She pauses. Actually, she _doesn't_ know whether Hida's blessing had come from Amaterasu or Onnotangu. "Either the Sun or Moon, I will admit which exactly I do not know. But I do know you have his body."

"You don’t know even that much, and yet you would imagine yourself a better warden of his remains than I?" Hireldi snorts, before plucking one of the strange crystalline rods out of the ground, "I think not. Claim your prize my strength or not at all."

There is a sudden tension to the air, a greasy weight that sends a tingling sensation crawling across Sakura's teeth. She can hear the other poles begin to hum, violently.

"I know that he was the forebear of one of my vassals, and I told that vassal that we would recover his body to be honoured properly."

Sakura's blade slides home in its sheathe with a _click_ , as she closes her eyes for a moment. Amaterasu's gift still secure around her waist, providing her better protection than mortal armour. The tension is something to consider... but in this moment there is only the strike. 

Sakura crouches, then _jumps_ , Amaterasu's power propelling her forwards in a flash faster than the eye can see. She covers the distance between Hireldi and her in an instant- and as she speeds towards Hireldi, her blade slides out of its sheath, seeking to inflict a grevious injury on the demon.

_Omoide_ bites deeply, blessed jade cleaving a deep trench into the living stone that makes up the demon’s flesh, and in its wake the fires at her core spill out like water from a jug.

"Not bad," Hireldi grunts, staggering back a pace and touching one hand to the cut in her chest, "now... my turn."

She lifts the crystalline weapon, and with a shriek to level mountains its counterparts respond. Lightning erupts in brilliant arcs, harsh and cold and furious as any god, filling the tunnel from end to end.

Sakura's eyes widen slightly, and she stumbles backwards. Part of her thinks to strike back at the lightning- but no, that wouldn’t work. So, she simply dives back, hoping Yuzuki does better than her- and can get to her side quickly. 

Yuzuki, meanwhile, grits her teeth, starting to charge forwards. She relies on her speed and agility, surprisingly nimble for her large form, as she tries to make progress in the lightning-filled corridor, trying to get to her wife's side.

The fury of a storm, leashed to the will of a lord among demons, is a fearsome thing indeed. Divine blessings preserve the two Exalted from death, but even so they are sent staggering, muscles twitching wildly as electric currents course through steel and flesh alike.

"Still alive?" Hireldi mutters, sounding audibly disappointed, "I could have sworn I had those crystals calibrated properly..."

Then she shrugs, broad shoulders rising and falling, lifts her spear to a ready position, and thrusts. There is nothing complicated about the strike, no artistry behind her technique, but when a weapon as sharp as this is paired with the raw strength and speed of a lord among demons, how much finesse does one truly require?

Sakura might still be twitching, still reeling from the lightning- but she's not entirely helpless, and she doesn’t just _give up._. Both her blade and sheath come up, and she crosses them, trying to catch the spear between them and deflect it up enough to survive the thrust.

She takes a thin cut to her side, but no actual injury- and the force from the blow reverberates, causing Hireldi's spear to quiver in her hand, and- vitally- leaving a small opening in her defences, in time for Yuzuki's strike. 

It comes like a thunderbolt, the Moon-blessed samurai charging at Hireldi, her claws having grown again, and her expression one of quiet fury. There's no subtlety in her attacks as she hammers downwards, taking advantage of the opening her wife provided her with.

At the last moment the demon spots Yuzuki’s approach, aborting her attempt at a follow-up blow and turning it into a hasty defense. The attempt is not entirely successful, but it _does_ rob the attack of much of its force... and, in its limited state, opens up Hireldi to the duelist she tried to slay.

Sakura's bare foot slams down on the ground as she steadies herself, breathing out softly. And then, a moment later, she strikes, uncaring of remaining pain from the lightning. Yuzuki's given her an opportunity- and she takes it, striking with both blade and scabbard in rapid succession, performing a _kata_ that's more Mirumoto in style that her Kakita training- but it's one that seeks to drive Hireldi back further, put her more on the defensive, and to give Sakura herself some room to recover.

The combination of blows is enough to put the demon on the back foot once more, and this it seems is more than she can bear.

Hireldi screams, the roar of the blast furnace and the cry of an eagle blending together in twisted melody, and forces her body forwards. She ignores the ring of jade and moonsilver against her stony hide, pays no heed to the coordinated movements and beautiful kata of her samurai foes, lashing out with her razor-edged weapon again and again in a blur of inhuman speed.

Sakura switches from offence to frantic defence- the spear is everywhere at once, and so is her sword and scabbard, lashing out and deflecting as Sakura puts everything into her defence- she can tell that this is very close to Hireldi's last attack, but a desperate attack can still be dangerous.

And, indeed, it is. The first blow is turned aside, the second and third avoided at the last moment, but the sheer strength behind the blows leaves Sakura's arms aching and weak. That is all it takes, and the fourth blow traces a neat line from shoulder to gut, parting skin like paper and drawing hot blood in a wave.

Then Hireldi seizes Sakura with her free hand, pivots, and _throws_.

The reinforced door to the vault at Sakura's back crumples like paper beneath the weight of her hurtling body, and she scarcely feel the landing.

Yuzuki's eyes widen slightly, before narrowing. She doesn’t scram Sakura's name, or shout at Hireldi- Instead, she simply presses forwards, her claws reaching out with blinding speed and fury to slash and rend Hireldi's body.

The assault is fierce and unrelenting, forcing Hireldi back one step at a time, until she is pressed up against the passage wall and cannot retreat any further. For a brief moment she is open, her throat exposed, and Yuzuki lunges for a finishing blow...

She stumbles.

"Ha!" Hireldi snorts, knocking the blow aside, the moment of vulnerability passed, "I thought you looked young. How long have you even stood among the Exalted, moon-chosen? A year? Less?"

Yuzuki does not respond, for it is the way of the Utaku to battle in silence... but Sakura, lying dazed amid a pile of rubble, can see the signs. She can hear the trembling in her wife’s limbs, smell the rank desperation and looming exhaustion; days of combat, of flight through alien skies and battle with inhuman monsters... she was awake and dressed by the time Sakura herself awoke earlier in the day, and never said for certain that she slept at all...

"So young... so _weak_... you thought to challenge a demon lord within her sanctum, and dreamed of success?" Hireldi laughs, resuming the fight, spear and claw clashing over and over again, "Give it up, girl. Surrender now, and I’ll let you live, pride of place among my collection!"

Sakura grimaces slightly as she rises to her feet, an arm behind her to steady her as she rises. 

And then, she freezes. That feels like a _leg_. An armoured leg, armour that's... in a Rokugani design. She thinks, at least. The design feels _old_ , but then she stands, her hand moving over the chest of the figure. 

And her breath catches, as she feels the _Crab_ mon on the laquered surface. 

She turns, realising how exhausted her wife must be right now from what she can hear of Yuzuki's breathing and smell from her. She takes a deep breath, steps forwards to Yuzuki's line of sight, limping slightly as she points towards Hida-no-kami's body, her message hopefully clear. Then, she takes the biggest gamble of her life. And speaks up. 

"Let her leave... and I will surrender myself... to be your... 'trophy'."

The words fall heavily from her lips, and in their wake a shocked silence descends over the chamber, both combatants pausing for a brief moment in shock. 

"Sakura!" Yuzuki shouts, her war-form edging the words with a hawk's hunting cry, "You can't..."

The rest of her words die unspoken, the truth of what stands at Sakura's back apparent at last.

"Will you now?" Hireldi, Demon Lord of Hell, sounds positively intrigued, "I've never had a _living_ trophy before..."

Sakura lets out her breath. This Hireldi seems to be a collector, and the novelty of a living 'trophy' will cause her to keep Sakura safe. 

For a certain definition, at least. "I suppose I can be honoured by that, at least. Yuzuki, don't argue, please."

She tilts her head, removing her _obi_ and sheathing her sword as she walks forwards. "But... yes. I will be your prize, O Hireldi. Let me give these to Yuzuki and let her leave, and I will remain here."

"Ah," Hireldi says sharply, bringing the crystalline spear around to point at Sakura's heart, "Set them down, there, and back away. _Then_ she can collect them."

Sakura nods, calmly placing them down on the floor, then moving back.

"Go on then, girl," the demon says with a laugh, "Collect your burden."

Hesitantly, Yuzuki picks her way forwards, avian talons clicking slightly on the cold stone floor. She says nothing, but Sakura can feel the full weight of her attention on the Solar, feel the way her hands tremble as she kneels to pick up the precious gifts from goddess and servant.

Sakura simply nods at her- she doesn’t say what she wants to, which is _make sure you keep them safe for me_. 

She knows Yuzuki- and she knows Kisada well enough to know that he won’t simply give up either. She'll just have to endure for however long that is.

For a long moment, Yuzuki simply stays there, still and silent, her clawed hands wrapped around the divine treasures. 

Then she turns, form flowing like water, and a moment later a falcon takes to the air, the weight of a loved one's possessions in its grasp. 

With a low, rasping laugh, Hireldi sets the staff aside and moves closer, the gleam of avarice behind her eyes like a physical weight against Sakura's skin. 

"There is no love without pain," she says, cruel amusement in her words, "Your lover should be blessed, to learn so quickly."

Sakura presses her lips together for a moment. "Anything that is worthwhile has difficulty involved. Sometimes that difficulty might be called painful, yes, especially with an emotion as deep as love."

She stands, her eyes sightlessly open as she turns to face Hireldi.

"Hah. You'll learn, soon enough," the demon lord says, one granite hand coming down to rest against Sakura's shoulder. This close, the Solar can feel the heat from the demon's inner flames against her bare skin. "Now... I think over here will do nicely, at least until I can have a proper display constructed."

She leads Sakura, a firm grip on her arm that never slackens, across the length of the vault. Everywhere there are trophies - arms and armour, banners and insignia, the well preserved bodies of the demon's greatest foes and most treasured victories - each stood atop a solid slab of some perfectly smooth stone. One of them is empty.

"Stand on the pedestal," the demon commands, releasing Sakura's shoulder, "and... well, you swore to be my trophy. Act appropriately."

Sakura stands, and... well, she mostly looks awkward. "My apologies, this... is not exactly a situation I am familiar with."

...well, not exactly. She _does_ have experience with being on display and admired, but that’s by Yuzuki, and... well, not exactly something she wishes to share.

Hireldi snorts. "No, I suppose a blind woman couldn’t be expected... very well. No weapons, no armour, so... something simple. Arms behind your back, folded... feet apart, shoulder width... head up, you have a rather lovely neck... lean, slightly... yes, good. _Seal._ "

As she speaks the final word, the plate beneath Sakura's feet hums slightly, and... she cannot move. Her arms, her legs, her hair... every part of her is perfectly motionless, held in place by a sense of gentle, unyielding pressure.

Sakura lets her breath out slightly, the only motion she _can_ make. Being restrained so completely isn’t a... _completely_ new experience, but with no motion at all even to squirm...

And, of course, before was at the hands of the woman Sakura loves. This time... not so much. Sakura breathes steadily, not talking, simply keeping calm.

"Beautiful," Hireldi says, and Sakura can _hear_ the smirk, "Absolutely perfect. And what makes it even better is that you clearly still think you have a way out of this."

A single finger runs down Sakura's flank, across her front, tracing the lines of and curved of muscle and skin, and somehow the sensation feels _muted_ , as though there were a thick layer of fabric between bare skin and rocky digit. 

"Let me guess..." Hireldi chuckles, "You have allies, subordinates, reinforcements. You sent your lover to rally them, trusting that she would mount some kind of rescue, that she would set you free. And you are right - I certainly expect her to _try_."

She leans close, the heat from her burning eyes warming the skin of Sakura's cheek. "She won’t succeed. I’ll have the locks changed, the defenses strengthened, and when she tries to win her way to your side I’ll capture her as well. Then I’ll have two Exalted for my collection. Side by side, forever."


	6. Pride of Place

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Trigger warnings: Unwilling nudity in public, threats of exposure to sexual assault, unwilling medical procedures.

Sakura cannot say how long she stays there, in the vault, held immobile by strange sorcery and surrounded by the plundered treasures of ages. There is no way to track the time, no way to occupy herself, no way to do anything but exist and get lost within the confines of her own thoughts.

Eventually, however, Hireldi returns, accompanied by a small retinue of other demons - two dozen at least, the majority of them the lumbering ape-things she has already met, but also including a number of lithe humanoids and a scuttling bug-like thing that rides on the demon lord's shoulder. 

"Hmm... healing well enough, I suppose," Hireldi murmurs thoughtfully, looking over Sakura's immobile form as she might a statue, "but... would it be finer to put her on display broken and bleeding, or pristine?"

"Each has its merits, great one," one of the lithe, vaguely humanoid demons says in a lilting voice, "it depends on the precise nature of the message, the theme you want to convey..."

They hold discussions in that vein for some time, in fashion disturbingly reminiscent of artists critiquing another's work.

Sakura simply lets out her breath. There's... a sneaking suspicion that whatever her preference would be would either be simply ignored, or... *twisted*. She has no idea what... _improvements_ Hireldi might want in the process. 

If she expresses a preference not to be healed. 

Well. 

It's only a masterful control over her _on_ that stops Sakura from shuddering at the thought of what _that_ might cause. 

Well, that and these... bindings.

"Hmm... pristine, then," Hireldi ultimately decides, and with a gesture sends two of the snuffling apes to Sakura's flanks, "Hold her... _unseal_."

The magic of the podium fades, and Sakura can move again, a discovery somewhat sharpened by the sudden spikes of pain from bruised muscle and fractured bone made to support weight once again. The Blood Apes move swiftly, taking her by either arm, and... the scuttling bug-thing makes its way closer.

"Hold still, lovely," it chitters in a high-pitched, childlike tone, "This won't hurt a bit, I promise!"

Sakura sucks in her breath slightly, a flicker of apprehension crossing her face as her head turns towards the bug, her cloudy eyes flicking slightly as they open. "...define 'hurt'."

...still, she's in no condition to really resist. As much as she doesn't want to, Sakura holds still.

The little demon - and really, its no larger than a child's fist - laughs cheerfully as it approaches. Chitinous claws rest against Sakura's foot, feather-light.

"Well... this!"

And then it _burrows_.

Skin and flesh and bone part and flow around the demon like so much water, sealing back up in its wake, and... Fortunes, Sakura can _feel_ it, feel it crawling beneath her skin, feel it questing up the bones of her leg, feel it burrowing up towards her gut and her heart. It doesn't hurt, it feels numb in a way that might almost be pleasant in any other circumstance, but she can still _feel_ it.

Sakura's breath catches, and it's an effort of willpower to steady her breathing and to _keep_ it steady. It's all she can do to not just... flood her body with Amaterasu's raw power, to purge the invader from her body- but she's aware, _very_ aware, of her circumstances. 

So, she simply tries her best not to show this is getting to her. She... has _mixed_ success.

"Good, good... bring her," Hireldi says brusquely, turning away and heading back towards the tunnel, and the blood apes lift Sakura by each arm and carry her lightly between them. This close, the stench of their matted fur is almost overpowering. "Now then, we have the route scouted, yes? I don't want... yes, good..."

She discusses plans and details with the subordinates fluttering around her, and every step of the way Sakura can feel the demon beneath the Solar's skin. It seems to be... _weaving_ flesh and bone back together, for lack of a better description, causing cuts to seal and bones to solidify once more.

Under any other circumstances, Sakura would view that as amazing- and certainly, as soon as she can, she gets onto her own two feet to get at least _some_ dignity about this. Gritting her teeth, she tries to ignore the demon... as much as she can. Instead, trying to listen in with half an ear to the plans Hireldi has.

Judging by the commentary, Hireldi is preparing some form of parade through the streets, that she might display her new trophy to the teeming throngs of demons within Hell. There is talk of security, which implies that some of her rivals might want to undermine the whole act, and of the best route to take to avoid certain natural hazards...

"Tell me, Sakura," the demon lord says after a moment, "You are a monarch in your land, yes? There must be certain formal ceremonies you undergo... what do you wear, during them?"

Sakura grits her teeth as she feels the demon fixing the massive bruise on her back, before letting out a breath. "Kimono, generally. I am not... inclined to give you the detail you would need to mock my people's customs properly. You have me, not them."

There's a small glint in her eyes. She might have resolved herself to be... _relatively_ accommodating for now, but that would be a step too far.

"Oh?" Hireldi pauses, and with her the entire procession as she turns, "would you rather be displayed nude, then? Strung out like a slab of meat for the appreciation of the masses? I have no interest in flesh alone, but not all my kind are so discerning."

She steps closer, and cups Sakura's jaw in an basalt hand. "Perhaps I will invite Florivet. You passed through his domain en route to mine, did you not?"

"...if you will display me nude, then so be it. I cannot control what you do. But I can control what _I_ do. And I will not make it easy for you to mock my people."

Sakura's expression is firm and set as Hireldi raises her head. Even if she remembers a certain Seppun, so long ago now, and her body tenses.

Hireldi snorts. "Well, I suppose I'd be more surprised to find a solar _weak_ in will. Still, this presents a challenge... if you will not tell me what I need, and you will not _cooperate_ , how are the masses to know what you truly are? What I now _possess?_ "

One of the humanoid demons - lithe, slender, vaguely humanoid but with an unnatural smoothness to its skin and movements, the scent of wildflowers - bows low at Hireldi's side. "A suggestion, mighty one... more research can be conducted on her homeland with time, but for today, there _is_ the sun-vault..."

"Hah! Yes, that will do," Hireldi nods and sets off again, diverting down a secondary corridor, "Tell me, Sakura, what do you know of the Titanomachy?"

Sakura frowns. She's... fairly certain she's about to hear a pack of lies and propaganda- even if Hireldi herself might believe it. 

But... she might as well hear the tale. Especially since Hireldi will likely tell it anyway. "Very little, I admit."

"Truly? And you call yourself a queen... scholarship must have declined _immensely_ since the All-Makers fell..." Hireldi shakes her head, chuckling, "Still, I shall be brief. The Titanomachy was the reason you were _created_ , why the Traitor Sun saw fit to invest its fire in mortal men and women. A foolish gesture, it was thought, but one that appeared to work - it is why the All-Makers reside here, in Malfeas, and why your mortal children rule Creation."

Ahead, there is another vault, this one wrought from what sounds like some strange form of glass, or perhaps crystal. It is warm, even at a distance.

Sakura tilts her head. 

She doesn't even _bother_ to call on Amaterasu's power to check the truth of that. Really, it doesn't matter if _Hireldi_ believes it or not- and there likely is a kernel of truth, a war that Amaterasu and Onnotangu had to empower champions to fight. "I see."

Her tone doesn't convey the deep sarcasm inherent in those words. "I assume you are taking me to some of your relics of this... _war_ , then."

"I want everyone who sees you to know what you are," Hireldi says firmly, and before her advance the walls of crystal fold open like the petals of a flower, "Which, of course, means decorating you in the style of those champions of old."

Inside the vault is... jewellery. Rings, necklaces, bracelets and torques, displayed on cushions of whispering silk. Some lie inert, mere gold and silver wrought into pleasing forms, but others... 

There is a medallion of jade that crackles like the fire, and a rope of something that echoes with the cold beauty of the changing moon. There are jewels like sing with the midnight sky, and, in the middle of them all... a crown that hums with the spirit of the sun wrought in gold.

Sakura's head turns, tilted, as she takes in the room with her senses. 

Her eyes, clouded. 

"It all looks _wonderful._ "

_Fortunes_ , so much of this was so gaudy.

"Yes, I've always..." Hireldi stops, and grunts.

Sakura's expression is perfectly neutral.

The demon turns with a sigh. "Hold her tight."

At Sakura's sides, the demon-apes do as directed. She cannot move, cannot squirm... cannot evade the blow as Hireldi balls her hands into fists of stone and punches Sakura square in the face. 

The world spins, a faint ringing sound in the distance, and...

"You don't speak to me like that," Hireldi says in a flat, unflinching tone, "I am not some peer or some subject, I am not a rival to be needled with humorous words. I _own you, slave_."

She hits her prisoner again. And again. And again...

Sakura grits her teeth, taking the blows. 

She doesn't cry out in pain, even as her head rings from the blows.

Eventually, Hireldi stops, controlling herself with a sigh. 

"So much for entirely pristine," she grumbles, "no wonder the others don't take live trophies... maybe I'll have you stuffed instead... bah. Garb her."

Sakura shakes her head a bit to clear it, even as... all right, she _does_ shudder this time as the demon starts moving under her face, starting to heal _those_ forming bruises.

She doesn't struggle- or speak more. Simply makes one more internal mark. 

She's going to have a _long_ time to bring Hireldi to account, even if it doesn't happen this year.

In the end, the demons settle on a set of fine chains - judging by their commentary, they are meant to be wrapped around the arms as a form of unarmed combat aid, but stretched out are more than capable of serving as more conventional bindings. Then one of the lithe demons - _Neomah_ , as the demon lord addresses it, though whether this is name or title Sakura does not know - picks up a slender brush and approaches with a shallow bowl in the other hand. 

"The work will be temporary, but I feel I can capture the appeal," she says in a musical tone, already studying Sakura's body as though it were a canvas, "Now, hmm... no, the breasts are too small for a mountain scene, so... ah, yes, that works..."

The brush dances back and forth across her skin, painting Sakura with images and the glyph-forms that make up the language of god and demon alike.

As her arms and legs are bound tightly, Sakura grimaces as she feels the paint as well. At least the time spent gives the demon within enough time to heal her lingering injuries and the new bruises...

...actually, she corrects that as she feels it under her cheeks again. That is _not_ better. In the end, she settles on trying to keep her breathing steady.

Bound and appropriately decorated, there is nothing she can do save endure as the demons pick her up again and head out once more. Hireldi leads the way, but is at least silent this time. 

Their destination appears to be some kind of tunnel or passage carved into the volcano-like structure of the sanctum. Waiting for them there is a large... Sakura isn't actually sure _what_ it is, save for being vaguely insectoid, hairy and roughly the size of a warship. There is a platform on the back, a strange palanquin, and as she is carried along a ramp Sakura understands that this whole contraption is effectively a mobile dais, complete with throne.

Sakura, at this point, saves any comment- she's made her test of how much leeway she's given (not a large amount), and there's nothing she can really do to change things- at least, not for now. Instead, she focused on thinking through her situation. And the possibilities.

At least it's... _marginally_ cooler, now.

Hireldi takes her place upon the ornate throne at the rear of the palanquin, and Sakura is carried towards the front. A series of long posts stand proud there, fitted with rings and chains of iron, and in low tones her demonic handlers begin discussing exactly how she should be secured. Does Lord Hireldi desire her standing? If they hang Sakura from the top, will... wait, how fragile are human necks anyway...

Sakura speaks up only once, when the subject of human necks comes up. 

"Fragile enough that if you hung me from the neck, you would have to deal with her displeasure."

In the end, her bindings are adjusted somewhat, her back pressed up against one of the posts, chains wrapped tightly around her body to bind her to the post to display the captured Solar for all to see. 

It's... at least she can use the chains to relax into a bit, focus internally and try to achieve some inner tranquillity, and ignore any calls and jeers that might come her way. Oh, and the demon, its job done, leaves her body. 

That is a _definite_ relief.

The preparation drags out for an indeterminate time, as more demons are found to staff the platform and reports are carried to and fro.

More of the "Neomah" approach Sakura, talking among themselves in quiet tones as they run slender hands across her body, and... ah. It appears they are taking Sakura's form, their flesh melting and running into new shapes as they study her carefully. 

That done, they scatter - some lie around Hireldi's feet, caressing her stony skin in seductive ways, while others permit themselves to be chained for display in different poses along the sides of the platform, and two more kneel demurely at Sakura's sides with heads bowed. 

"Advance!" Hireldi roars, and with a chittering chorus the strange beast of burden obeys, lumbering towards the light ahead.

Sakura's expression is carefully even. But internally... well, this is both uncomfortable in _so many ways_ and...

Well, honestly, it seems very, _very_ overblown. Sakura contents herself with that, at least- Hireldi's display might be impressive, perhaps, but there's no subtlety to it. All raw... sexual appeal. 

And, of course, it marks her location oh-so-obviously to Yuzuki. Sakura's under no illusions that they'll launch their rescue _now_ , unprepared, but... well, Hireldi won't just do this _once_ , Sakura feels confident of that. There will be an opening, and Sakura can take her advantage then.

She just has to endure until then.

And endure it, she does. The tainted heat of the demon sun, the pressure of the chains, the roaring cheers from a hundred thousand throats... and above it all, the attention. The eyes of the multitudes fixed upon Sakura, knowing what she is, knowing who defeated her. They shout insults and crude suggestions in a myriad of tongues, and her captor basks in the sound even as Hireldi's own retainers chant ritual praises and identify Sakura to the masses. 

Until, at last, it is over. The voyage is complete, the volcano surrounds them once more, and the demons unchain Sakura from her restraints. Hireldi, well pleased, waves negligently at one of the attending Neomah to 'clean her up', and soon enough Sakura is alone with the demon in a small chamber of cool stone in the depths of the sanctum once more. 

"Your skin is so fair," the demon murmurs softly, soaking a cloth in a bowl of warm water, "you will need to be careful, lest it burn for too long in the sun..."

"...I have spent time in a desert before, so I am... somewhat aware."

Sakura hasn't been freed entirely- rope now binds her arms- but she has a bit more freedom, and if she can get even more... She doesn't entirely _trust_ the... _Neomah_... but she accepts the help. "Unfortunately, how much time I spend in the light of your sun is not of my choosing."

"It will not be long, I think," the Neomah says softly, "Word will already be spreading, that Citizen Hireldi has captured a Solar. There will be others who come, seeking to bargain for your possession or release, and some may not bargain at all."

She begins to clean Sakura's leg, soft motions of the cloth clearing away sweat and painted marks alike.

Sakura narrows her eyes slightly. "A Lord of Hell, I know her as. But then, I have met one more powerful than she in this place already. And... ah. Of course. Your sun will be one of them, I assume."

"Unquestionable Ligier," the Neomah says with a faint nod, and... yes, that is fear in her tone, "He will hear of this, of course, and others besides. I would... prefer not to be here when one takes an interest, but..."

"You are sworn to Hireldi."

Sakura's head tilts, her tone turning slightly dry. "And what should I hope for, hmm? In your humble opinion?"

...a question she would not expect a samurai to answer, but, well... Sakura isn't feeling charitable to this place. Or its inhabitants.

"I _belong_ to Hireldi," the Neomah corrects Sakura gently, "And I cannot say. It... depends on what you desire, I suppose. And where your skills lie."

Sakura's eyes turn sharp. Part of her wants to continue questioning. But... she doesn't want to overplay her hand, either. 

The topic doesn't have much of a point, in any case. Sakura doubts she'll have much input into that. But... "What will be, will be. In any case... I will thank you, at least, for helping to clean me. What is your name?"

"I am Shaelae," the Neomah says with a soft laugh, "Who knows, perhaps you could summon me?"

Sakura lets out her breath softly. "I will admit, Shaelae, that especially after these events I have no intention of treading that path... but if ever I find someone who _does_ tread that road that I can tolerate, I will be certain to mention your name."

The Neomah pauses for a moment, glancing around, and then leans close.

"Who knows," she whispers in Sakura's ear, "Perhaps you could mention the name 'Hireldi' as well..."

Sakura's head tilts. "...is a lord of hell capable of operating here when they are summoned?"

Shaelae hesitates. "It is... forbidden under the Law for serfs to know the secrets of sorcery."

...and wasn’t _that_ an interesting answer. Sakura files it away for future reference, but simply nods. "And, of course, you properly follow the Laws."

She lifts her arms up so Shaelae can scrub her back, her mind already considering.

"I believe I do," Shaelae says, again careful with her words, "Though since it is illegal for a serf to look upon them, I cannot say for certain."

Sakura's head turns, simply... stunned at what she just _heard_. "Are you permitted to be _told_ them?"

"Ah, well, yes... I think?" The demon says slowly, "We are encouraged to... seek one of the Priests of Cecylene for guidance, but..."

Sakura simply shakes her head. Most peasants could not _read_ , but that was quite a different matter than making the laws they were meant to obey illegal to _learn_. 

She falls silent, not trusting herself to speak without displaying her true feelings on this place.

"Is it..." the demon hesitates for a moment, "Is it true? That you killed one?"

Sakura lets out her breath in a huff. "I did, yes. In a situation where it, personally, had accepted my challenge."

Shaelae makes a strange sound, somewhere between a laugh and a sob. "Ah... you really are from Creation... you thought that would matter?"

"Given the reaction of his _pets_ , apparently not. I will not speak my opinion of what that says about this place."

The demon finishes her work, and Sakura feels... well, _almost_ clean. As close as she are likely to get, while the memory of the Sesseljae lingers. 

"I will enquire about food," she says, bowing low and retreating towards the door.

Sakura nods. There's more she _might_ ask, but she's cautious, right now- maybe she'll have some more questions for this Shaelae later. "Might you enquire about bedding while you do so?"

"Of course, my lady..."

-/-

To Shaelae's credit, the food and drink she sources are palatable enough, and something resembling an actual bed is likewise obtained (though from where Sakura could not possibly imagine). Hireldi, seemingly pleased with her initial outing, makes no further demands on her prisoner's time, and for what Sakura can only imagine are several days she is left with little to do but wait in the small set of rooms allotted to her. 

It's better than the vault, at least.

Sakura spends most of the time... meditating, mostly, reminding herself of Amaterasu’s blessing.

However, good things cannot last, and on what Sakura thinks is the third day the demons return. She is escorted to a stone chamber in the depths of the sanctum; a small, near featureless stone box, save for a metal frame festooned with chains and shackles. Laughing between themselves, Sakura's escorts secure her in place, and then depart, leaving her in solitude... until, an hour or so later, when Hireldi arrives with a guest.

"Here she is," the demon lord says, and Sakura's first surprise is that her voice appears strangely polite; not quite deferential, but sufficiently reserved as to be worth noting. 

The second surprise is that the person accompanying her is a human. 

He is tall, and slender of build, dressed in long robes of flowing silk that remind Sakura of the garb often worn by natives of the Burning Sands. In one hand he holds a long staff of polished crystal, which chimes faintly as it touches the ground. 

"I see..." the man says, a faint note of displeasure in his tone, "Is there some reason she is nude and tied to a frame?"

Sakura tilts her head, interested to hear Hireldi's reply... and noting the deferential note she gives to the man. Humiliation is her guess, and it’s interesting to see the man has no intent to oblige Hireldi.

"She insists that to tell me what the appropriate garb would be would serve as insult to her culture," Hireldi says with a shrug, "As for the frame... she _is_ one of the Dawn... your tastes are well known, Peer Yashar. Is this insufficient?"

"It is _distracting_ ," the robed man - Yashar, apparently - says curtly, "The work you have requested of me will require time and careful attention, so please... oh, no matter."

He taps his staff on the ground once more, and... lengths of silk simply _appear_ , weaving themselves out of the thin air to garb Sakura in what feels like a remarkably traditional kimono.

Her eyes narrow. "...you are a Sorcerer. I assume the restraints are _also_ there so I don’t attempt to stop whatever spell you weave."

"How perceptive," Yashar says dryly, "Honoured Hireldi, this will take some time, as I said. If it please you, I will perform the work and then invite you to inspect the result."

"That will suffice," Hireldi says with a nod, turning and departing. Yashar waves his hand, and the door to the chamber slides shut in her wake.

"Ah, how did one such as her capture something like you..." the sorcerer mutters, half to himself.

Sakura tilts her head, listening to his footsteps, her stance wary. "I allowed her to. What does she have you here to do... Yashar, was it?"

"Just so," the sorcerer nods, settling himself down into a cross-legged posture in the middle of the chamber, allowing his staff to simply... remain upright, even without his hand. Instead he opens his hands and begins... _conjuring_ items into them, lumps of stone and blocks of wood in sequence, each of them held briefly and studied, "I am here to, in the opinion of Hireldi, _perfect_ her latest trophy. A strange request, but then the will of demons is often thus."

"Perfect."

Sakura's tone is slightly flat, even as some... very, _very_ old taunts come to mind. "And what... _imperfection_ , exactly, are you here to correct?"

"Hmm, yes, I think marble will do nicely... strong, regal, appropriate sympathy," Yashar says with some satisfaction, holding a small block of the stone in his hand, "Well the _primary_ issue is your eyes, as I understand it, but if you have other requests I'd be willing to incorporate them. One of my peers had me correct an error in her birth gender just the other day, and that was a fascinating ritual to undertake..."

Sakura's tone is cold. "I would not call my eyes flawed. I have never _needed_ to see to perform my duties, and now with the blessing of Amaterasu, I suffer from no hindrance whatsoever. I am content as I am... not that Hireldi cares, it seems."

She grits her teeth. "A question. What was it Hireldi said before, about your tastes?"

"Sex. I'm quite fond of it," the sorcerer says dryly, "Hireldi, however, is a white flame who forged itself a suit of stone to actually live within, and so doesn't quite understand the finer nuances. I'm not so foul as to take advantage of the unwilling. Now, then, this might be somewhat uncomfortable..."

And then he is touching Sakura. 

He doesn't move. He doesn't even draw close. And yet a thousand, thousand invisible hands are suddenly exploring every inch of her body, a touch without heat or pressure dancing across skin and hair and blinded eye with careful, clinical precision.

Sakura doesn’t flinch, but she does let her breath out, blinking a few times.

Her breathing steadies as she focuses past the... the _sensation._ There's something he wasn’t saying, something about her blessing specifically. 

Did he _know_ someone like her? Another blessed as she was, from elsewhere in the world?

"Right, that will do," Yashar nods briefly, weighing the chunk of marble in his hands, "Now, before I begin... I don't suppose you possess the ability to arbitrarily reject all changes imposed on your form by sorcery? I ran into a solar who could do that once, _dreadfully_ inconvenient, and I'd rather not waste the time..."

"I am considering letting you find out... but no. I will have to look into it."

Sakura's tone is just as cold. "Was that Solar a... Dawn... like me?"

"Zenith, actually - priest caste - wonderful girl, very strong willed, wanted her for myself but she wouldn't have it," Yashar chuckles, "Gutted me with a blade made of fire, actually, the only wound my blessing didn't heal..."

He doesn't move, but... in the background, behind his words, Sakura can hear music. A faint, haunting melody, rising and falling in waves, and with every note the chunk of marble in his hands deforms slightly.

Sakura tilts her head. "Oh? What was her name?"

She can’t stop what’s going to happen- not effectively, not now... but she can... _take notes_. Yashar isn't simply following orders, he's a willing participant in the atrocity of this place. That is something worth remembering.

"Beautiful Jasmine. Hates me to this day, I think, and to be fair I _did_ kill her father," the sorcerer hums slightly, a counterpoint to the music in the background as he studies the changing stone in his hands, "What's it like being a solar, anyway? Every example I've seen or heard of seems to have a certain nobility to them, even that street rat, and I wonder if it's something in the candidates or the process itself..."

"How do I describe it? The warmth of the sun filling you, knowing it lifts you up, knowing you've been found worthy by the Sun herself- and not the sun of this place, but the _true_ sun. Worthy as you are."

Sakura hums. "...are you from the Hejaz? You're... very familiar with Rokugani clothing, and your own reminds me of that place."

"Careful now, I'm fairly certain that Unquestionable Ligier is older that the sun of Creation," Yashar says with some amusement, "And I can't say I've ever heard of this 'Hejaz'. I'm from the Inner Threshold, the Southern coastlines actually, and... you have no idea where that is, do you? How strange."

The music stops, and in his hands the sorcerer now holds a tiny statuette, Sakura's form represented in perfect detail.

Sakura doesn’t even dignify that first lie with a response, nor the second statement. 

She clicks her tongue once, twice, then frowns, listening to the echoes, realising what’s in his hands and realising his spell must almost be ready. And she closes her eyes, bracing herself for whatever Yashar does next.

"Now then, I'd tell you to hold still, but it seems that's not an issue," Yashar says cheerfully, and then... 

Sakura doesn't recognise the flavour of the power he calls on... or, perhaps, it would be better to say that she doesn't recognise _all_ of it. The endless hungry shadow reminds her of that called Noh, and the glittering inhuman perfection is a purer form of the echoes Sakura found within Hireldi, but the others... the meaning of a spoken phrase, the slow ennui of the ancient, the ravenous hunger that crushes all before it... these, she does not know. But then, she does not have to.

Sakura is sure, as she has rarely been before, that on Yashar's brow there is the mark of some distant, fallen cousin to the dawning sun upon Sakura's own.

...well, now, that is... _concerning_.

And also doesn’t bode well for what comes next. Sakura simply braces herself.

There is a rush of wind, a surge of power, such _glorious_ power, and then...

It stops. Yashar lowers his arms. 

"And we're done," he says lightly, "You might as well open your eyes."

Sakura opens them, hesitantly.

It makes no sense

Sakura cannot even begin to process it. There is a smear of... something? And a pool of something else, and an overlay of... she has the words for these, of course she does, Sakura has listened to those born with sight describe them often enough, but what word corresponds to what sensation?

Sakura closes her eyes for a moment, calling up old memories. She _does_ have the concepts, deep within the piece of Amaterasu. 

Akodo's memories, of war and peace and art and beauty. 

And of a man who had sight. 

Her eyes open, _clear_ olive eyes focused on Yashar. "You know... if this had been offered, I might have accepted. Probably not from you, but one day. But you, Yashar... you've stolen that from me. You, and Hireldi. You’ve taken..."

There's a feeling in her gut, some feeling of _loss_ that she doesn’t yet understand. "You've _stolen_ that choice from me. I will never, ever forget that."


	7. Shakes The Earth

Time runs strange in this realm, and all the more so for one held captive within the depths of a fortress, but by Sakura's reckoning perhaps a week has passed since she submitted to captivity and became Hireldi's latest trophy. The demon lord has been busy, and as the Neomah Shaelae predicted, it seems her presence has drawn the attention of those greater than her by far.

The great behemoth-steed has been called forth once more, and in chains she has been bound upon the prow, but where once before Hireldi surrounded herself with signs of decadence and wealth she now commands a guard of soldiers and golem-automata to escort the procession through the streets.

Sakura has not been idle during this week. She knows her rescue will come, and so she has spent her 'free' time practicing with...

...her new sense. She wants to flare her soul, to check whether her eyes react badly to her power fully unleashed. But that would draw too much attention. 

Worse, it would let Hireldi know that her... 'fixing'... actually has _gotten_ to Sakura. In ways that she hasn’t yet fully... she can’t put words to it, but the feeling of loss remains. 

But she has meditated inwards as well, and Sakura thinks she's found a new use for Amaterasu's power- one that will be devastating, given the right opportunity.

As for her current situation... chained with her arms and legs spread, Sakura is at least. 

Well. 

She's not sure she'd call it _armour_ \- the pieces of golden metal are... _there_ , technically, covering her chest and her crotch (with a cloth hanging down from the lower part and boots on her feet), but so much of her body is left uncovered that to call it armour seems an insult to every armour craftsman who ever existed. It seems more like a cross between a mockery of armour and some of the outfits she's heard Yuzuki describe to her, worn by dancers in the Hejaz.

It's blatantly mocking her- or at least, their idea of a warrior blessed by Amaterasu. Sakura simply sighs, conserving her strength and closing her eyes. She's sure the watching audience would enjoy seeing her struggle against her chains, but she has no particular desire to accomodate them.

The convoy winds through streets and channels, over bridges and around great plazas, and steadily the crowds of demons surrounding them begin to thin and vanish. Those who remain spare only half a glance for the passing display, and it is not hard to tell why, for the city around them is... well, ruined seems almost too kind a word, carrying with it suggestions of natural decay and the slow march of time.

There is nothing natural about the devastation that surrounds Sakura now. 

Broken buildings line the path, piles of rubble and steaming debris are scattered across every surface, and everywhere the brass and basalt is warped and molten. Parts of the city look as though they were savaged by a great beast, others seem to have been overrun by a barbarian army, and a few are simply... gone, wiped from existence as though they had never been.

Sakura tilts her head, listening to the noises. There's still... _some_ noise- much of it coming from their convoy, as music starts with... what Sakura would call almost a touch of _desperation_. No, not quite, but there's a definite urgency to not allow complete silence. This place, however... the surrounding city is, in fact, much quieter.

A different demon holds sway here, perhaps? One of these Unquestionable that Shaelae had mentioned, it must be- from all Sakura has seen of Hireldi, she would not bring one of her trophies so far from safety willingly, so she must have been commanded. 

That suits Sakura perfectly- it's a weak point. One Yuzuki can use to strike, far away from any of the defences. The... unknown element, however, is the master of this place. Will they stand by, or interfere?

...and, of course, whether Kisada will lend his aid to this rescue.

Hireldi whistles, a piercing sound akin to a teapot left over the flame, and from all sides the attending demon-apes scurry forwards. They unfold strange parasols of thin brass and shimmering silk, turning a platform into a pavilion.

Moments later, it begins raining fire. 

No mortal flame, this, but strange tongues of red and black and white, blending together and falling from the sky in steady downpour. Where it lands the structure of the city begins to deform, stone running like water and metal melting like wax, painting the land in shimmering pools of frozen blood. Droplet piles atop droplet, pool runs into pool, and in a dozen places Sakura sees the resulting melange twisting itself into strange new shapes. And on the horizon... a palace.

It is large as a mountain and grander than the heavens themselves, a magnificent conglomeration of soaring towers and crenelated walls standing in rings around a central dome of scarlet jade, and it shines like a work of art in the glow of the falling flame.

Distantly, she can hear the sound of voices raised in song, tens of thousands crying out in praise of a single name, a single being.

"Kuara," they cry, "Kuara... Kuara... Kuara..."

Sakura's face is smooth, even as she puts together the pieces and Fortunes this Kuara already comes across to her as a collection of the things she dislikes most about Hell. She opens her eyes again, scanning the landscape- she might as well put this new sense to _good use_. 

At least this landscape... seems to offer a lot of cover to sneak up on the palace.

A moment later, and Sakura understands why the city for miles around is so... broken.

From the peak of the tallest tower, there is a brief flash of light, a whistling shriek as something cuts through the air. It lands some distance to Sakura's left, and in response an area of the city at least a mile in every direction just... folds in on itself, torn free of the surroundings with a horrible grinding roar and bent roughly into new forms.

"...lift the banner higher," Hireldi grunts to one of her attendants, who is desperately lifting a heavy sheet of brass emblazoned with oversized characters as high as it can.

Despite her captor's concern, however, no further forms of strange death are visited upon them as the convoy begins its approach. The looming bulk of the fortress-palace would cast Sakura into shadow were any permitted to exist here, and great gates are opened by demons clad in suits of obsidian that look disturbingly similar to the o-yoroi suits worn by her samurai.

Sakura... examines the palace with all of her senses. More to... well, be as aware of what's coming as she can be.

Their conveyance comes to a halt in a massive courtyard, and Sakura's chains are unwound from the pillars at the prow and- after some reworking of her bonds- passed into Hireldi's granite hand, that she might hold Sakura leashed like some strange hound. Together they descend, making their way to the foot of the vast flight of steps that lead up to the main palace itself, each one wide enough to hold a powerful demon in the form of living armour and a pair of braziers that burn with red-black flame. 

"Honoured Hireldi," one of the demons says, bending its serpentine form in something resembling a bow, "Unquestionable Kuara, Who Shakes the Earth, bids you welcome to her domain. The Unquestionable one awaits you in the main audience chamber."

"Then I shall proceed immediately," Hireldi replies, and with a harsh and entirely unnecessary tug on Sakura's chain she begins moving up the steps. 

It... is hard to tell, when speaking of a pillar of flame encased in stone, but Sakura thinks that Hireldi appears somewhat... _nervous_.

As the chains are unclipped from her wrists and ankles, reworked into manacles allowing for some movement- and a metal collar fastened around her neck, the least tugging her forwards, Sakura grimaces slightly, but does follow. The time isn't quite right, not yet. 

She certainly notices the nervousness. She's almost tempted to comment, to needle Hireldi at a time when she can't take her frustration out on Sakura... but Sakura isn't sure of that last. So, instead, she takes note of it. And waits, patiently, for her opportunity.

And so she is led, bound and clad in some strange perversion of a warrior's garb, into the main audience chamber. 

No. Into the _temple_.

Great pillars stand in rows, supporting the vaulted ceiling, and from each stony face hangs a banner both tattered and stained. The iconography that adorns them all is strange and varied, ranging from abstract swirls of colour to stylised representations of some foreign land, but there is no mistaking the golden thread and solar iconography that bedeck at least a dozen of the ones furthest from the door. 

Between the pillars kneel the clergy, clad in fine robes or gleaming armour by turns, their heads bowed but their eyes raised to drink in the sight of their idol. Their bodies are wasted and frail, their lips chapped and worn, but still they sing the praises of their liege and whisper the word 'Kuara' one rasping syllable at a time.

And Sakura looks upon that which they so revere, and the world shifts around her.

A great head, colossal in size and brass in make, sits within a halo of burning lead wide enough to swallow buildings. Its lips are made of ruby, and its eyes burn with blackened flame, and it is the most important thing in all the world. Sakura feels her stomach squirming, her heart beating as it once did only in the presence of her wife, her knees trembling with the briefly suppressed urge to hurl yourself to the ground and worship...

Why would Sakura resist? Why would anyone resist?

Sakura almost bends the knee, for a moment. But then... then, she recalls all the reasons _why_ she loves Yuzuki so. One moment in particular comes to mind- Sakura, sobbing, breaking down a few weeks into the Burning Sands because she _missed home_ like a child- and Yuzuki didn't judge. She just let Sakura let everything out. 

That was the moment, looking back, that Sakura really _fell in love_ with Yuzuki. Her strength, quietly confident and a steady presence, yes, but also her kindness, the way she supported Sakura in that moment when Sakura needed it- and kept doing so.

Why would she resist these emotions, so similar? Wasn't that _obvious_? Because this... _thing_... would never offer that. It would never comfort a young woman further away from home than she'd ever been. It simply demanded worship. Tried to push the feeling into Sakura's _mind._

Sakura breathes once, twice. She doesn't bow down and worship, merely folds her hands in front of her. There wouldn't be any meaning to it normally... but now, there's that small act of resistance. That refusal to bow.

_You will not break me._

At Sakura's side, Hireldi sways slightly, her blue-white flames turning a darker hue for a brief moment... and then she controls herself, and though she bows it is an act of politeness, not the abject fealty that the "unquestionable" seems to demand.

"Unquestionable One, Hireldi has come as commanded," she says, forcing the words out, and at the front of the hall the colossal icon shifts its gaze.

" **This is the Solar?** " Kuara intones, and her voice is like music, heartbreaking in its beauty. 

"She is, Unquestionable One," Hireldi confirms and, seemingly unable to resist, adds "Of the Dawn, captured by my hand."

Kuara... does not seem to move, or act, but a moment passes and suddenly the icon-form is gone. Instead it is a woman who strides down the hall towards Sakura, a woman of broad shoulders and powerful arms, whose three faces look in different directions and whose hair is a long mane of lead and iron. She wears nothing, for what garment could possibly hope to reflect her beauty, and as she moves the gazes of her adoring choir turn to follow her like iron towards the pole.

"Welcome, Solar, to my domain," the Demon Prince says in the voice of a priest, reaching up to cup Sakura's jaw in one deceptively gentle hand, "On behalf of all of Hell, allow me to apologise for how you have been treated."

Sakura's breath catches for a moment, more at the _speed_ than anything else- her eyes narrow slightly, in suspicion. She... well, Yuzuki alone is testament to Sakura's _tastes_ in women, but after that initial impression, of glory demanding worship with no comfort... well, she's not entirely certain this isn't a deliberate attempt to play to said tastes. She reminds herself of Yuzuki, just to make sure (and tries not to think too hard about how interesting she finds the idea of wearing something like this outfit for Yuzuki to see).

Still, at the moment... Sakura bows her head slightly, in a polite nod. "Your apology is... welcome, Unquestionable-"

And if there's the slightest hint of irony about her use of the title, well, Kuara doesn't have to notice. "Although this one does wonder how you would have preferred I be treated."

No direct question, just in case 'unquestionable' is a law that allows for no room to clarify. But Sakura does push it. Partially out of curiosity. 

Partially to see Hireldi squirm a bit as she's criticised.

"Is it not obvious? You are an Empress," Kuara says with a laugh, and oh how wonderful it would be to listen to that laugh again, "I would have welcomed you as such! There is protocol for such things, left unused for millennia but remembered all the same. An embassy should have been established, heralds sent forth, courts held and tours of state made... and this one saw fit to tie you to a pole and display you like a piece of _meat_. Phagh."

Hireldi's teeth grind against each other, but she does not object, does not respond, even as the Demon Prince moves to Sakura's side and rests one arm across her shoulder. "Come, walk with me, let us see if we can find something deserving of your quality..."

Ah. _There_ it is. Kuara has called Sakura here and Hireldi has brought the Solar, but despite the byplay they are not so different as one might believe. The desire is the same in both cases; _fame_. 

Hireldi desires to be known for her trophies, and so treats Sakura as such, but Kuara... yes, Sakura recognises the way that she speaks now. She would have treated the Empress as an honoured guest, and in so doing highlighted her own virtues for all to see, borrowed some portion of Sakura's fame and deeds for her own, as might any daimyo seeking the attendance of worth at their own courts.

...Fortunes, she might have the figure of a Unicorn or a Crab (and that is distracting all on its own), but her diplomatic approach... it's almost disturbingly _Crane-like_ in its politeness to Sakura. 

Sakura doesn't voice the obvious follow-up question- which is to say, would she still be a hostage or would she be free to leave. She suspects voicing things so openly would cause Kuara to become a lot less polite. 

(She pushes the part of her that's almost tempted to suggest being displayed for _Kuara_ bound to a pole wouldn't be so bad far, _far_ down)

Instead, she merely walks with Kuara, her voice slightly lowered as she thinks how to leverage this. "That would be... a gracious way to treat one who would have, in this hypothetical, admittedly attacked your domain."

"I am a gracious soul," Kuara says with one set of lips.

_Praise be_ , says another

_Only she is worthy_ , says the third. 

"One could hardly fault an outsider for decisions based on false information," the demon continues, while Hireldi trails in their wake, "and even if they did, there is no reason one cannot be courteous even on the battlefield, surely someone of your refinement will agree?"

Sakura ignores the two other voices, partially, she admits, through fantasising about Yuzuki holding this leash instead. 

It does _work_ , and if Kuara thinks the blush is for another reason... well, Sakura can work with that. "Indeed. And I must admit, from all I have seen of this place, my particular reason for opposition to Hireldi does not apply to you in the same way."

"Oh?" Kuara asks, her voice dropping to conspiratorial lows as she leans in, and... the leash is in her hands now, somehow, Sakura didn't even notice Hireldi give it up but there is no way to miss the gentle pressure or the possibilities it implies, "And what reason was that?"

...right. That method of ignoring the voices might be _slightly_ backfiring. 

Sakura Instead starts making _plans_ in one corner of her mind for when Yuzuki and her are... urgh. 

Knowing the reasons why Yuzuki may well not be in the mood for that for a while is quite the effective mood-killer as well. The fact that Sakura can... well, _see_ the leash and the manacles on her wrists and her outfit serves as another reminder. Still, Sakura keeps that flurry of emotions off her face, her blush remaining as she lets some of the the struggle to resist, some of the arousal, show in her voice, just a *little* bit of unsteadiness even as she speaks of practical things.

"One of her trophies is valuable to a vassal of mine, and I promised to aid him in retrieving it."

She is... slightly coy about what exactly the trophy is. She's curious if Hireldi has been boasting about _that_.

The three of them have entered a gallery of sorts by this point, a covered walkway exposed on one side to the open air beyond. Between the pillars that hold the roof aloft you can see the vast, sprawling bulk of Kuara's palace-fortress. 

"Hmm... this vassal of yours. If I returned that trophy to him, would be be grateful?" Kuara muses aloud, moving over to stand by one of the openings and look out over her domain. "Would he kneel before me and show it?"

She looks over one shoulder at Sakura, and her eyes are burning flames. "Would you?"

"He is proud, and does not bend the knee easily."

Sakura tilts her head. "As for myself... I am one woman, yes, but on me does rest the weight of an entire nation. It is no simple thing to bend the knee when such depends on you."

She doesn’t give Kuara a _no_ \- to either question. At this point... keep her talking.

But Sakura knows the answer to both questions. No. Neither would bend the knee. In truth, Kisada wouldn’t trust it as a gift from Kuara. 

(Nor would Sakura)

"Well, time enough for such things later," Kuara says with a brief chuckle, turning away from the view and heading back along the hallway once more, "For now, ah, I wonder if I might have your opinion on a certain work of art. You see..."

She stops, suddenly, and there is no secret why; there is a man, standing in the hallway ahead of them.

His build is short and stocky, his arms corded with muscles, his olive skin covered in winding tattoos of breath-taking artistry. His torso is bruised and scarred, covered with a dozen minor wounds, but he holds himself with quiet pride all the same, and in his emerald eyes dance stars uncounted.

"My apologies for the interruption, Unquestionable One," says Togashi, bowing politely, "But I am afraid I must ask you to return my liege."

In his hands he holds a brass orb the size of a man's skull, etched with glowing runes.

Sakura breaks into a smile as she sees Togashi. And she nods her head towards him, ever so slightly.

It’s not what she was expecting, but.,. Well, she can’t say she isn’t glad to see him. 

Literally, this time.

"...star-chosen," Kuara says, and her beautiful voice is somewhat strained, "You would threaten me with my own works? In my own citadel?"

"To threaten and bluster is foolish," Togashi says serenely, and in his hands the orb unfurls like a flower, revealing fractal patterns of spinning rings in orbit around a tiny, glowing seed, "One should act decisively, or not at all."

Then, with a distressingly casual gesture, he tosses the orb out of the window.

" **NO!** " Kuara cries, and dives after it, flinging herself into empty space and leaving captive and guest behind.

"My Empress," Togashi says with a brief bow, "This humble servant suggests that now would be an _excellent_ time to run."

Sakura nods. And then, she looks at Hireldi. "An aspect of my culture for you, since you were so eager to know of it earlier. The sword is often called the soul of a samurai."

A blazing sword of light appears in her hands, a brief crack of sound echoing through the room. With three quick movements, the leash and the manacles between her wrists and ankles are cut apart, offering no resistance to the sword of pure sunlight.

Then, with a mocking bow to Hireldi, she runs, following Togashi, swift as the wind. "How long until that explodes?"

"Damn you, samurai!" Hireldi roars... but she does not pursue, instead turning and fleeing in the other direction as fast as her legs can take her. 

"This humble servant has not studied the construction of such things," Togashi says blithely, "but advises his liege to _jump_."

Sakura's head turns towards Togashi for a moment. 

...then she jumps out the window, to the outside of the fortress. 

She assumes he has a _landing strategy_.

As it turns out, he does not.

For a long moment Sakura hangs suspended in the air, wind howling as she plummets down towards the brass streets below, and then...

_a blur of motion, a moonlit aura, an avian shriek..._

With all the speed of the hawk whose shape she claims, Utaku Yuzuki snatches her wife from the sky.

Sakura breathes out, a small laugh escaping her as the glowing sword disappears and she wraps her arms around Yuzuki. She breathes out, whispering into her wife's ear. "I knew you'd find me."

"I'm sorry it took so long," Yuzuki murmurs in reply, her head buried in Sakura's shoulder even as her wings beat at the air with powerful motions.

"I too must apologise for the delay," Togashi says, and... he doesn't appear to be flying so much as falling sideways, legs folded in meditative posture, "Also, you may wish to close your..."

And then there is light. 

It is bright, brighter than anything should be, bright enough to pierce stone and metal and flesh, bright enough that for a moment Sakura fears she may go blind once more... and then it stops, and fades.

And the ground below begins falling away into _nothing_.

Sakura winces away from the sudden light, swearing. "That... aaargh. What _was_ that, and would it have killed either of them?"

There's a pause, as she rubs her eyes. "...and if not, how long will it have taken them out of play?"

"Unquestionable Kuara is a renowned forger of weapons," Togashi says by way of explanation, "I do not pretend to be her equal in the craft, but she named that example a 'Soul-breaker Orb'. Ah, here we are."

On the horizon, Sakura can see the reinforced volcanic lair of Hireldi... which appears to be in the middle of an eruption, the upper parts collapsing in on themselves and spewing a column of molten stone high into the air. At its base, racing away as fast as its multitude of legs can take it, is mad contraption of wood and canvas that seems to be sailing the air as another ship might the water.

You would recognise the broad, pillar-like form of the warrior at its prow anywhere.

Sakura smiles- and there's a gleam of satisfaction in her eyes. "Do we have Hida's body?"

"I certainly hope so..." Togashi mutters, suddenly falling _down_ again, and... yes, his parabolic arc takes him directly down onto the deck of the ship, a course that Yuzuki follows with somewhat more grace.

"Ha! He actually succeeded!" Hida Kisada roars with a fierce joy, pausing for a moment to turn and swat aside an incoming chunk of burning stone with his tetsubo, "Welcome back, _tenno_!"

Sakura touches down on the deck, a victorious smile on her face. "And I cannot say it is a displeasure to witness Hireldi's fortress go up in flames. A _proper kimono_ would be appreciated."

She pauses for a moment. "A shugenja to check my eyes first, however."

"...your eyes?" Yuzuki says with a level of concern that borders on panic, her wings melting back into her sides as she looks Sakura over closely, "What happened to your eyes?"

Sakura opens her eyes, looking at Yuzuki- _properly looking_ at her- for the first time, and speaking softly. "Your hair's... black. Skin... a bit darker than mine. Your muscles... well, they _look_ just as nice as they _feel_ , there's that at least."

Olive eyes, sharp and clear, _look_ into Yuzuki's own dark eyes, emotions flickering across Sakura's face. "...not just that. Your eyes are beautiful, Yuzuki. Um. Hireldi wanted her trophy to be _perfect_ , and she didn’t exactly ask permission. It's... I feel like I’ve _lost_ something, it's _stupid_ but-"

She cuts off. "...she had a sorcerer actually perform the task, but I need to be sure he didn’t... leave any other nasty surprises behind."

"I... oh," Yuzuki says softly, a faint blush colouring her cheeks as she lifts one hand to touch just below her eyes, "You... really think..."

It is at that point that another burning boulder smashes itself into ruins on Kisada's weapon, not half a dozen paces away. 

"Less romance, more running!" The Champion of the Crab yells, but there is laughter in his tone. 

Together, they set course for home.


	8. Sheathe

Unlike the vessel which carried the group into Hell, this one was clearly built to carry cargo; the hold is deep and wide, and the number of private quarters considerably reduced. Even so, when the Champion of the Crab and the Empress of Rokugan claim one such space for their own, there are few who would even dream of interrupting.

At present Sakura is being poked, prodded and generally _interrogated_ by one of the Crab's sorcerer-priests, a shugenja of the Kuni family. She has to admit, the tales of their bizarre appearance were clearly somewhat more conservative than Sakura had previously imagined - between the corpse-white face paint, the strings of feather charms hanging from every limb and the somewhat unsettling intensity in his eye, the Witch Hunter looks less like a samurai of Rokugan and more like some wild shaman from the far frontier.

His habit of jabbing Sakura with lumps of jade and interrogating her at length on everything the demons put her through do not do much to endear him.

"She is clean, Hida-dono," the Kuni says at last, stepping back and bowing to his Champion and Empress in turn, "I would recommend jade petal tea for a week or two to ensure that any lingering corruption is purged, but otherwise... satisfactory."

"Good," Hida Kisada rumbles, leaning against the far wall, and Sakura doesn't think she'd need to guess what his response would have been were she _not_ pronounced clear of any such corruption.

Sakura nods in thanks. She's given... mostly _clinical_ answer to the Kuni, bearing the interrogation. After all, if there _had_ been corruption...

Well, there's a reason Sakura wanted to do this as soon as possible. 

The Empress nods. Now _finally_ dressed in a proper kimono- Sakura is grateful at least some of the _Himura_ have her size in clothing- she rises from her kneeling position. "I cannot say I am displeased. Either Hireldi wants her trophies 'unblemished'... or it's possible Amaterasu's blessing grants me either immunity or resistance to corruption."

She nods to the shugenja. "My thanks, Kuni-san."

"I would think the former more likely," the Kuni says with a shrug that sets his charms to singing, "the latter is... _possible_ , but there have been far too many people who think they have discovered some foolproof way to resist the taint and not enough who have succeeded."

His work completed, the Shugenja bows and retreats from the chamber, leaving Sakura alone with Kisada.

"The sorcerer could be a problem," the Champion of the Crab offers with a grunt, "You said he made a statue in your image... something like that could well serve as a means of attack in future, a way to target you with his magic from far beyond your range of response."

"Possibly. However... he's encountered others blessed by Amaterasu in the past. And from his words, it’s possible to use Amaterasu's power as a defence against attacks of that kind."

Sakura hums. "And from the way he said it, and my own gifts... well, I do not think he was lying. In any case, I have options to defend against that sort of attack, and I fully intend to seek those options out."

She pauses, as she remembers a legend she once heard of when she was still at the dojo. And then, Sakura _smiles_. "In fact... there's a legendary technique of my school- created from techniques first discovered by Daidoji Hayaku. It allows one to... essentially, draw against hostile _maho_ that seeks to twist the swordsman. And, with great effort, strike against the source, wherever it may be."

Her smile has teeth, now. "I will need to talk with my sensei. But after that... well, that will provide protection for now."

"Hmph. Of course a Crane would think to use _iaijutsu_ first," Kisada snorts, shaking his head, "Still, your will be done and so forth."

He pauses for a moment, and Sakura almost thinks he isn't going to speak at all, but...

"You have helped the Crab reclaim their heritage," he says at last, quieter than Sakura has ever known him to be, "I'm not a poet. I can't come up with some elegant way of expressing what that means to us."

"I will not expect it- we demand too much of your Clan than is fair, Hida-san... and often, expect too little from you. The Crane, the Empire as a whole..."

Sakura breathes out. "Well. In any case- you don't need to make a grand declaration of it, Hida-san. You are a man of action rather than words, and that _is_ something to be respected."

"I’ve heard that before," Kisada snorts, then pauses in thought, "From anyone else, any other Empress, any other Crane... I’d write it off. Just more flattery, looking to soften the blow. _You’re very brave, Kisada-sama, and we admire you greatly, but alas we have no Jade to spare_."

He looks Sakura up and down, the Crane dressed in the colours of a Crab, and nods. "You, though... you came with us into Hell. _Led_ us here, no less. Duelled a demon lord too, and lived to tell, which is no mean feat."

"Even if that feat did involve my surrender to her."

Sakura's feelings towards that are... somewat mixed, to be honest. It's the sort of thing that most Rokugani would _never_ accept doing. She certainly never intends to make it public. But it gave Kisada and the others the chance to liberate Hida's corpse, with Hireldi absent. 

She breathes out. "In any case... I fully intend to continue treating the Crab differently than my predecessors on the throne have. And my position _does_ give me much ability to change attitudes. In the short term, forcing the Crane to accept the Yasuki's role- and position- would be of great help to your Clan in the courts. It will likely be the work of generations to fully change attitudes... but our blessings do give us the time to ensure it is done."

"...alright, I’m curious," Kisada crosses his arms, studying Sakura with a frankly appraising look, "why? You have our gratitude and loyalty already, Hida’s body guarantees that. Why go against your own Clan for more?"

Sakura pauses. "On the practical level, I could say that I've merely secured your loyalty to me, personally. When I die, or retire... I can ensure Aimi is raised the best I can, but if I should be slain... she will have many of the same influences past Emperors did. We are... back to the same starting point, so to speak."

She pauses for a while. "There is more to it, although you're unlikely to appreciate the comparison involved, but... my mother, unusually for one from the Scorpion, _believes_ in Bushido. She is of the opinion that it is what separates a samurai from... any person with a sword. But, because the enemies of Rokugan are unlikely to hold to the same standards, there must be those who set aside Bushido, or at least much of its tenents."

She smiles slightly. "And in the same way, because there is an enemy, the _oldest_ enemy, that has no regard for diplomacy or culture or the rules of limited warfare that- between Rokugani- keep us bound together, from damaging the Empire as a whole... well, likewise, there must also be those who set aside many of those things. Not entirely, but..."

Sakura turns to face Kisada, her gaze steady. "My mother always taught me- when I was very young- that both of those sacrifices should not be disdained- they should be _respected_. The Scopion, putting all else aside for the sake of duty... and the Crab, sacrificing much so that Rokugan may be kept safe from the horrors behind the Wall. I want to do more, not just because if I leave it here we risk being in this same situation again should I die, but because you _deserve better._ "

There's a pause. "And to answer the immediate question that arises from that... my mother is, currently, _beyond_ angry at her Clan of birth."

For a long minute, Hida Kisada just stares at Sakura, his expression as flat and unreadable as the mountain. Then he grunts and turns away.

"I need to inspect my own samurai," he says vaguely, making for the entrance, "I'm sure you can find me if anything else is needed."

Sakura merely nods. "Of course, Hida-san."

She lets him leave, with his own thoughts- she recognises _that_ expression, after all. Kisada needs some time to think, it seems. 

So does she. 

\--/--

When Yuzuki enters a while later, it's to find that Sakura's gotten out Benten's... 'wedding gift' to the pair. A collar, that could produce silver... fabric, metal, Sakura wasn't quite sure which, over the body of the one it was placed on- at the command of the one doing the fastening. 

Normally, Sakura wouldn't think much of such a thing, but a gift from a Fortune wasn't to be turned down and... well, it could be put to various inventive uses. Yuzuki doesn't find her wife putting it to any of _those_ uses, however- Sakura has the collar around her neck, yes, but she's simply using it to create... patterns on her skin, loops and whorls with no particular order to them, and she's looking at the patterns, studying them quietly, a small frown on her face.

"Sakura?"

There is a certain hesitance to Yuzuki's voice, and the way she hovers in the doorway... it is almost as though she feels as though she is intruding; new behaviour, an attitude that Sakura might have never before associated with her wife.

Sakura's head raises, a gentle smile appearing on her face. "Yuzuki, there's no need to... come in, please."

Then, she turns towards her wife, the patterns of silver on her skin stilling for a moment as she taked Yuzuki's hand. "I was just... honestly, working out how my sense of touch... um... how to put it... 'matches up' with what I'm seeing. I..."

A note of something different enters the smile. "There were no nasty surprises left along with being able to see, so... well, I might as well get used to it. You're not intruding, you never could."

Yuzuki steps in, hesitantly, and closes the door behind her. Then she sinks to her knees and presses her forehead to the floor.

"I’m sorry," she says, voice hoarse, a faint trembling in her limbs as she prostrates herself, "I am so... so sorry."

"Oh, _Yuzuki_."

Sakura crosses the room quickly, kneeling down next to Yuzuki and lifting her wife up from prostrating herself. "I told you to go. You had the most chance of making it out of either of us, even without the injuries I had just taken. And if we'd *both* left, Hireldi would have simply tightened her security, but with me she left herself vulnerable. Us remaining to the bitter end was... not an option."

Sakura breathes out. And embraces her wife. "I'm angry, yes. At Hireldi, at her sorcerer who did this... at Noh for separating one third of our strength. But at you? For doing what I _told you to?_ *"

Sakura shakes her head. "No. Apart from not getting any sleep the night before battle... and if you're going to try to take the blame for that, I *share* it for not checking to see if you'd slept enough under the circumstances."

"I know you're not angry," Yuzuki says, and by all the fortunes she sounds _miserable_ , "that's... I told myself you wouldn't be, but it doesn't help. Only a samurai can judge their own honour and I... I _failed_. I couldn't protect you, I couldn't defeat Hireldi, I couldn't do _anything_ except run and... I told myself I was better now, I didn't need to be afraid anymore, I was strong and blessed by the moon and it didn't _matter_..."

"...you came back. You saved me, you and Hida and Togashi took advantage of the opening you had to retrieve our goal from Hireldi. If we want to speak of honour, we can talk of me _*surrendering_ to give you that opportunity."

Sakura's arms tighten slightly around her wife. Fortunes, she doesn’t know what to _say_. She so desperately _wants_ to fix this, but she's not sure how, she's not sure she can. "Or we can go further back, how I failed to save the Emperor. How I failed to keep my Clan informed of _what was going on_. Doji Hotaru-san could have demanded my seppuku for that."

She pauses. "She _did_ as a test, but that's not my... you're not the only one who, despite their blessings, hasn’t been up to the task in front of them, Yuzuki."

"But that's just it," Yuzuki sobs, curling into Sakura, "you... you did all that, you fell short but you kept going... all I did was run and hide and... I didn't even find Togashi, he found me, he found me and then he led me to Hida-san and he put together the plan and I..."

She's barely even coherent at this stage; the woman who faced down monsters in silence, who upheld the standards of the shiotome with skill and grace for years unbroken, reduced now to a sobbing wreck in her wife's arms.

Sakura knows, now, that Yuzuki isn't... it won’t do her wife any good for Sakura to speak now. Yuzuki's beyond listening. So, Sakura simply holds her, letting Yuzuki cry, gently embracing her and reassuring her. She doesn’t even know for how long it takes... but eventually Yuzuki's tears subside. Eventually, her eyes red. And it's only then that Sakura speaks, her voice soft.

"I still remember the day... Fortunes, seven years ago now. Both of us, fresh out of _gempukku_ , and somehow I’d convinced our lords to let me come with you, to ride with the Unicorn across the Burning Sands. I’m still not entirely sure _how_ , to be honest. I remember feeling this... *ache*, as soon as we crossed the border. It just got _worse_ and _worse_. And then, three weeks in..."

Sakura closes her eyes, remembering the _dryness_ and the _sand_ and two strong, gentle arms around her. "I broke down crying. From *homesickness*, like a child on their first day at the dojo. And you... didn’t judge me. You just... embraced me, just like this, you let me cry and you even stayed with me when I slept that night."

She breathes in, then continues. "That memory has kept me going, _so many times_ , Yuzuki. Knowing you were there, even when we were apart, that I could _talk_ to you and hear your perspective and take comfort from your strength. I don't... I know that might not exactly make you _feel better_ , but I- if I’d had to leave you behind like I told you to... I’m not sure I would have coped any better, in hindsight. Having to leave behind the woman I love."

Yuzuki listens in silence, holding Sakura close, and when Sakura finishes talking the quiet lingers.

"You were very brave," Yuzuki says at last, her voice soft, "I remember thinking that. To a Unicorn living on the move is nothing... no, it is the way things should be, but you... you were such a model Crane. All wrapped up in silken fans and silken words, so delicate, and yet... you didn't just accept the challenge of a journey, you pursued it, deliberately. I..."

She lets out a slow, shuddering breath. "I'll get past this. I will. I just... need to think how. And... maybe I need a guide."

"I was out of my depth. If you hadn’t been there, I would have drowned."

Sakura breathes out. "The very least I can do is do the same for you now, Yuzuki. And... if I can help you find that guide, you need only ask and I’ll give you my aid."

Yuzuki's gratitude is voiceless, but hard to miss, and as the creaking of the wind-ship fills the air the two women slowly drift off to sleep, safe in another's arms.

The next morning... or whatever _passes_ for morning in this dark and cold desert... Sakura seeks out Togashi. She has some questions to ask him, after all... and a piece of information to give him. She finds him quickly enough, meditating at the prow of the ship- and she gets right to business. "You have my thanks, Togashi-san, for the rescue."

After a moment, she sits besides him. "I also wish to ask your advice on a few... unresolved matters from this journey."

"One does not thank the wind for blowing, or the water for flowing," Togashi says idly, opening his eyes - and in their emerald depths Sakura swears she can see the stars themselves spinning in distant symphony - and turning to face her, "But if you would have guidance I would be happy to oblige."

In Sakura's opinion, wind and water are hardly so directed... but in any case, she tilts her head. "The first is on the matter of the people we liberated from that... _blasphemy_. And where they should go. While I would be willing to find them a place in Rokugan, I am under no illusions- Rokugan would...likely not be the most welcoming place for them to start their new lives. Except perhaps the Unicorn, but even they are... many of these people weren’t even given _names_ , there's so much work that needs to be done to help them and I’m not certain we can. But I am... not equipped to find a better place for them, and I wished to know if you might know of any Fortune that... specialises in helping such people?"

"I would recommend you seek audience with Hotei," Togashi says after a moment, studying the far horizon, "the Fortune of Contentment will aid you better than I."

Sakura nods- it makes sense, after all. "My second issue... Yuzuki. This is... not a matter I will pursue unless she asks, but if she _does_ , I would like to have somewhere to start."

She pauses for a bit. A lot of this is... well, _private_ , but... "In the simplest terms... she has expressed that she might require a guide. To her powers, to sides of Onnotangu that Rokugan does *not* consider... and one blessed by Onnotangu, one older than us and more versed in the powers his blessing grants, might help her a great deal. Would you... know of any like that?"

Togashi pauses for a long moment.

"A question of my own first, _tenno_ ," he says calmly, "how will I die?"

Sakura tilts her head, looking at Togashi. "A strange question. One I do not know the answer to, I admit."

"In truth, neither do I," Togashi replies, voice steady as a rock, "Yet, if one was to speculate, I might say I expect to end as a full half or more of all the Maiden’s Chosen have ended in the last thousand years - with a Lunar’s fangs against my throat, and Lunar claws around my heart."

Sakura tilts her head. "...so, you do not keep in touch."

She thinks over what _else_ happened a thousand years ago. "Because the Chosen of the Maidens had a hand in the events that caused you and the other Kami to flee to Rokugan?"

"For some of them, certainly," Togashi nods, "though many hold to other, more immediate reasons to disdain my kind. To summarize two thousand years of bitter history in the span of a conversation is beyond me; sufficed to say that in this matter I cannot aid you."

Sakura tilts her head slightly, her eyes closing. Something seems... _off_ about Togashi's words, and the part of her that was an Emerald Magistrate starts to ferret out why, almost by instinct. Reading all those subtle cues she still has access to, ignoring her newfound sight- for reading body language that way is still... unfamiliar. 

She's not sure she'll ever figure out reading body language by sight, in fact. Fortunately, she doesn't have to. And while she might be grateful to Togashi... well, she's just had a strong lesson in the dangers of a _lack_ of knowledge.

In this case, the matter on its surface proves to be relatively simple - it is not that Togashi _cannot_ aid you, it is that he _will_ not. There is genuine antipathy towards the Moon Chosen hidden there beneath his flawlessly maintained face, and he will not lightly consent to any act which could aid them... including the introduction of a student to a teacher. 

And beyond that... the founder of the Dragon is _wary_ , not just of the Lunars or what they might do, but of _Sakura_. There is a fractional pause before every answer, an instant’s hesitation as he compares what he _could_ tell Sakura to the likely consequences of doing so.

Sakura pauses herself, for a few moments, her expression neutral. "I see."

It serves as a reminder, she supposes. She's dealing with a man who has spent who knows how long hiding his true nature from Rokugan, and while Togashi is her _vassal_... he's not necessarily her _ally_. His loyalty isn't to her, but- at least Sakura _hopes_ \- to Rokugan. And he cannot see everything, and has his own biases. She rises, nodding slightly in thanks for the... little help he has given. "In that case... if any come to our aid against the Realm when it attacks, I will ensure they do not learn of your presence within Rokugan, Togashi-no-kami."

"Your consideration is appreciated, _tenno_ ," Togashi says mildly, "though in truth I doubt it will be so easy. The truth of Rokugan and its leaders is known far and wide, now, for the capture of a Sun-Chosen by demons will not go unmentioned by those who traffic in the words of Hell."

"Or the manner of her rescue?"

Sakura lets out her breath, before shaking her head. "If any of Onnotangu's chosen make an issue of it, I will make it clear where things stand. You _are_ , after all, my vassal, and therefore I have an obligation to you in these matters."

"And what of one of the Maiden's Chosen?" Togashi responds, meeting Sakura's gaze at last, "Will you make your case to them? If they come for you then I _cannot_ act in your defence."

Sakura tilts her head. "If they will listen. If not, I will defend myself. I can not control their actions, but I can control my own."

"I suppose we shall have to hope that they send someone reasonable," Togashi says, dryly, and Sakura gets the obscure feeling that he might be attempting humour.

Sakura simply raises an eyebrow. "I suppose we shall."

-/-

The transition back to Ningen-do is surprisingly subtle. There is no great fanfare, no rippling portal torn in the air. One moment they are sailing across silver dunes, the next the air around Sakura is filled with falling snow and the rising slopes of mountain peaks.

"The Endless Desert borders all places of desolation and ruin," Togashi says from his position at the prow, directing the ship with a handful of brief gestures that see the vessel obey like a living thing, "we are somewhere in the mountains of my Clan - all that remains is to set down and see you to the nearest travel station."

Sakura nods as she comes up on deck, Amaterasu's obi around her waist providing her with warmth. It's... night, she thinks, as she speaks softly to Yuzuki. "I need to send a letter to Seppun-san as soon as we arrive, so my guard can meet us for the return to Otosan Uichi. And I need to arrange to visit the shrine of Hotei."

"Write it, and I'll carry it on the wing," Yuzuki replies in a murmur, her gaze roving across the mountain peaks, "Some fresh mountain air will do me good in any case."

Sakura blinks, tilting her head. "How long _does_ it take you to fly to Otosan Uichi from here? If you're..."

Then, her voice trails off, as she looks into the distant darkness- although it isn't so _dark_ anymore, reds and soft gold and other colour besides starting to show on the clouds. 

And then, as she watches in silence, the colour _spreads_ , lighting up all the clouds from below in a display of colour that covers half the sky or more, even as snow continues to fall in a soft flurry. She's vaguely aware of Yuzuki standing besides her in silence, but Sakura... her attention is caught, as something deep in her soul seems to sing in joy.

Amaterasu peeks over the horizon, seeming to greet her Sword back to Ningen-do, and _Fortunes_ , it is the most beautiful thing Sakura thinks she will ever see.

Yuzuki is at Sakura's side, one hand wrapped lightly around her waist, and together the two simply stand for a time and watch.

Some time later, Togashi approaches, walking surefoot across the deck even as the mountain winds send it swaying gently back and forth.

"Our location is known, _tenno_ ," he says politely, "I shall land this ship near Kyuden Tonbo. The samurai of the Dragonfly Clan will be more than able to provide transport for yourself and Hida-san."

"Thank you, Togashi-san."

Sakura separates from Yuzuki somewhat reluctantly, as they start to make preparations to land.

The Dragonfly are an oddity in Rokugan - a Minor Clan so closely associated with their Greater neighbour as to be a family branch in all but name, remaining independent only as a matter of politics and Imperial command. The Lion regard their existence as a perpetual insult, for the first Tonbo was sworn in marriage to a Lion general and betrayed that pact for the love of a Dragon, and would destroy the entire lineage if they could... but war against a Minor Clan is forbidden by Imperial Edict, and so the Tonbo remain, controlling the only means by which the southern clans can enter the mountains of the Dragon to the north.

If the Tonbo are surprised by the appearance of Sakura, Yuzuki and the Crab, they do not show it, and Sakura is swiftly granted their finest rooms and all the supplies and assistance required to prepare for her journey back to the capital. The Crab are not afforded quite so much courtesy, but Hida Kisada hardly seems to care, and when word comes to Sakura of his impending departure she finds the time to see him off.

Sakura walks towards Kisada, dressed in a fine kimono (gifted by the local Otomo), a soft smile on her face. "Hida-san. I wish you well on your journey."

She lowers her voice slightly. "Also... I will be granting you permission to serve funeral rites for Hida-no-kami in the ways of his time, if that is your intention."

Hida Kisada chuckles darkly. "Tenno, the Crab have burned our dead since the days of the First War. It might have taken the rest of the Clans centuries of time and the intervention of a necromancer to follow our lead, but I assure our, our founder's soul will understand."

He looks behind him, where a covered wagon sits, guarded by the full strength of the retinue that accompanied them into Hell. Even the slightest glance is enough to tell Sakura that each and every one of those samurai would rather die than allow any harm to come to their cargo.

"Besides which... the stronger the soul in life, the stronger the monster the shadowlands will make of its corpse," Kisada smiles slightly, expression shifting with tectonic sloth, "Can you even imagine what it might make of someone like him?"

Sakura winces outwardly at the thought. "Very well- I _did_ check for a reason, after all."

She pauses for a moment. "I will wish to attend- and so will many others. Of all Hantei's brothers and sisters... this is the only one we've ever had a body to give funeral rites _to_. It will mean a great deal to all of Rokugan."

She doesn't mention the political implications, the ways the Crab could use this- she's already mentioned some of them to Kisada on the journey home. And just before the battle with Hireldi, of course. And this isn't the time.

Kisada grunts, folding his arms across his broad chest - and fortunes, each of his biceps is larger than Sakura's thigh - but he does not dismiss the idea out of hand.

"It should be a Crab ceremony," he says at last, "I... can see the reason in inviting others, and I could hardly deny you the right to attend after your assistance in recovering the body in the first place, but..."

Sakura tilts her head. "Not unreasonable. My advice would be to invite a _single_ representative from each of the other Clans to the funeral itself. Allow them to take part, while reminding them that it is, ultimately, a Crab ceremony. But in this, I will leave the final decision up to you, Hida-san."

"Hmph. I will... consider the idea, after consulting the family daimyo," Kisada concedes, and Sakura has spent enough time in his company now to understand that this is his way of agreeing, "For now, safe travels, _tenno_. We will speak again in the future."

Sakura smiles warmly. "I look forwards to it, Hida-san."

-/-

For weeks Sakura and Yuzuki ride towards the rising sun, samurai ranging out before them to bring word of the Empress' return. A detachment of the Imperial Legions greets them just inside the borders of the Lion, offering to take up the duties of escort that they are owed until the Seppun can arrive, and at the lands of every daimyo they are honoured with feasts and celebrations. The people do not say it, but there is a sense of quiet relief about the whole affair, their ruler returned with divine mandate seemingly still intact. 

Sakura is on the approach to Otosan Uchi, the capital's great sprawling bulk just visible on the horizon whenever they crest a hill, when a party of samurai rides to greet them. They travel beneath the Chrysanthemum banner, a right given only to those appointed in direct service of the throne, and... yes, there in the lead is Sakura's cousin, garbed in brilliant reds and wearing a happy smile.

Sakura smiles as she sees Aiko, and motions for her cousin to join as soon as the party is close enough. "Bayushi-san, it is good to see you again. Have you had rice today?"

"Your humble servant greets you, _tenno_ ," Aiko says with a low bow, a happy smile on her face as she steps forwards, "and yes, I have."

There is... something slightly _off_ about Sakura's cousin, a weight or texture to her words that is not immediately apparent, a purpose in her movements...

Sakura tilts her head. Something seems... slightly off, but she,s not quite sure what? She focuses her hearing on her cousin, seeking the answer...

Aiko is calm and unruffled as she wheels her horse around and falls in at Sakura's side... presumptuous, perhaps, but technically permissible by right of station as Imperial Advisor and... yes, she's relaxed again now, at Sakura's side, so Sakura can only assume the tension was due to whatever message she intended to send with her positioning.

"So, have mercy upon your servant, don't keep her in suspense..." Aiko laughs briefly, the sound light and cheerful, "Were you successful?"

Sakura smiles at her, her eyes focusing on Aiko. "Yes. I will be attending Hida-no-Kami's funeral. Not... without its difficulties, however."

Sakura smiles, although it's a bit mixed. "And without it’s own... interesting additions. I’m certain you've heard of our guests by now."

"That would imply I had spies capable of providing me with a full and detailed report from the far side of the Dragon border, which is clearly impossible and also quite possibly illegal," Aiko says piously.

Sakura raises her eyebrow, a smile on her face. 

Keeping the Throne informed, after all, is the _job_ of the Imperial Advisor. "Naturally. And other... lasting effects, which you might _not_ know about yet- I haven't been... making this clear to our hosts as we've travelled, after all.. Yuzuki showed me the stars, the first clear night we had."

She sighs, patting her horse. "They were... _are_ beautiful."

"Aaannd you’ve spoiled it," Aiko says with a mournful sigh, "I was going to see how long I could get away with not mentioning that but you leapt straight to the obvious."

Her expression sharpens, and the mirth drops from her voice, "So, I suppose we want to claim it as some kind of divine blessing or bestowal?"

"I am"

Sakura breaks off for a moment, making a face as her hand raises to her eyes.

It's a few more moments before she speaks. "Intensely uncomfortable with 'crediting' the Fortunes with what was a deliberate... I don’t even know how to adequately describe it, Aiko. I’ve been trying to find the good in this and there _is_ good in this. But this was... not done out of kindness."

She pauses, taking a breath. "It was done because Hireldi- the demon who had Hida's body- wanted a trophy that was 'perfect'. Ignoring that my blindness has never hindered me in any was that truly mattered. So... no. I am not inclined to credit that to the Fortunes. Because it would not be crediting them at all."

"Sakura, _tenno_ , you are an honorable and principled woman and your reluctance to credit such a thing to the Fortunes is an honest one, but you appointed me as your Advisor because I am none of those things," Aiko says, her tone and expression deadly serious, "so please, consider the following; if it becomes widely known in Rokugan that the Empress was held captive in Hell, that her very eyes were a tainted gift forced upon her by an Oni, it will be a _disaster_."

"I-"

Sakura bites back her initial reply, breathing for a few moments. "Not tainted. The Crab were, at least, certain of _that_. Not that a lot of people will care for the distinction, I know that. You're... not wrong."

Her words are... even to most ears, but to one familiar with Sakura... the slight pause is there. Sakura lets out her breath, looking to the distance, before she makes her decision. "I will need to meet with Hotei in any case, to discuss what can be done to help those we liberated from Hell. I will ask his permission to give him 'credit' for... this, while I am there."

"Such is all I ask," Aiko bows her head, about the most she can do while riding a horse, "Now, to more important matters! Your daughter is _adorable_."

Sakura smiles warmly. "I nearly named her after her aunt, you know... so, how _has_ she been doing?"

"She’s started crawling," Aiko reports promptly, "Naturally I, as a loyal subject of my future ruler, have been motivating her through the strategic placement of tasty treats just out of arms reach."

From there the conversation continues along reassuringly mundane lines, and their group rides onward towards the distant city.


End file.
